Incumbent mayors in Minnedosa, Virden go down to defeat

The mayors of Minnedosa and Virden were defeated in last night’s municipal election, while a political newcomer was elected head of council in Boissevain and incumbent mayors were returned in Swan River and Killarney.

In Minnedosa, new candidate Tom Mathews said he was “shocked” to unseat incumbent mayor Ken Cameron in Wednesday’s election.

Mathews, who did not serve on the previous council, received 500 (64 per cent) of the 780 ballots cast in the one-on-one race. Cameron received 280 votes.

“I’m overjoyed, but I’m mindful that this is where the real work begins,” Mathews said. “I’m shocked. I’m beside myself. I wasn’t sure how tonight was going to go. I felt I had a chance, but I didn’t have any level of confidence I was going to win.”

Matthews said his first order of business is getting up to speed on what the town has already done to mitigate flooding. He said he sees further work as a priority for the town.

“What we need to focus on in Minnedosa is what needs to be done for flood mitigation for next season,” he said. “Especially with the potential high levels of precipitation they’re forecasting this winter.”

The council of six has only two returning councillors.

Eight candidates ran for the town’s six councillor seats, with three councillors seeking re-election. There were five new candidates.

Mathews also campaigned on improving the drinking water and developing a stronger year-round community.

Mathews has been a teacher at Erickson Collegiate for 22 years and a resident of Minnedosa for 15 years. He previously served on the Brandon University board of governors and is president and chair of the Rolling River Teachers’ Association.

Attempts to reach Cameron Wednesday night were unsuccessful.

In Virden, Bruce Dunning won a tight race to beat out incumbent mayor Tina Williams.

Dunning, a councillor and a former mayor, received a total of 402 votes — 52 per cent of the ballots cast in the two-person race. Williams received 375 votes.

Dunning said he is happy with the result and believes he will enter the position with momentum.

“I was on council for the last four years, and I have been mayor before, so it’ll be kind of be to hit the ground running,” he said. “Look at some new projects, try to get some development ideas going with council, and hopefully attract some new business and new citizens to our town over the next four years.”

Dunning has spent 12 years on Virden council. He previously served from 2002 to 2010, the first term as councillor, the second as mayor. Dunning rejoined as a councillor in 2022.

“I feel very confident, and I also know that I’ve got a really good council supporting me. So I’m looking forward to this. I think we’re going to really do some positive things and make good progress for the town,” he said.

Dunning spent the night watching his grandson’s hockey game with the U18 AAA Southwest Cougars — which ended in a score of 4-3.

“They won in overtime, so it was a close race too,” Dunning said.

Attempts to reach Williams were unsuccessful.

In his campaign against Williams, Dunning told Discover Westman that he was focused on population growth. He also said he wanted to draw on Virden’s potential due to its location along two transcontinental highways to grow the town.

William ran for re-election after three terms on the council, having served one term as mayor and two terms as a councillor.

Two new councillors were elected to the council of six, with four returning incumbent councillors.

In other Westman races, Swan River incumbent mayor Lance Jacobson was re-elected for a third term as mayor.

Jacobson won the seat with 728 votes, representing 66.5 per cent of all ballots cast. His challenger, Coun. Ainslie White, received 366 votes.

Jacobson has served a total of four terms on council.

Just one new councillor, Drew Ronnquist, was added this year to the table of six council seats. The rest of council returns after serving on the previous council, and all were acclaimed.

In Killarney-Turtle Mountain, incumbent mayor Janice Smith held her mayoral seat by receiving 80 per cent of the vote in a two-way race against former mayor Merv Tweed.

Smith received 1,053 votes to Tweed’s 265.

“I sure appreciate the faith the community has put in me,” Smith told the Sun. “I’m looking forward to serving the community for another four years.”

Two returning councillors — Rick Pauls and Jaret Box — and four new councillors were also elected.

In the Municipality of Boissevain-Morton, retired RCMP officer Terry Lucier won head of council with 69 per cent of the vote. Lucier received 681 votes in the one-on-one race with Coun. Rob Adams, who received 299 votes.

“Let’s just say I’m grinning from ear to ear and really happy to get the chance to do it,” Lucier said.

“I’m honestly a little bit gobsmacked myself, as much as I was confident in my possibility,” he said, adding he is “very happy and excited to take on the new role.”

Voter turnout was 54 per cent in Boissevain-Morton.

» cmcdowell@brandonsun.com