Karrouze ousted, other councillors re-elected

Brandon elected four new councillors and re-elected six incumbents to represent the 10 wards that encompass the city.

Only one incumbent candidate — Heather Karrouze in Ward 1 — was defeated in Wednesday’s municipal election.

Newcomers Ron Shaluk (Ward 1), Deveryn Ross (Ward 2), Craig Shanks (Ward 3) and Norah Woychyshyn (Ward 9) were all elected in tight races.

Returning councillors are Shaun Cameron (Ward 4), Greg Hildebrand (Ward 5), Shawn Berry (Ward 7), Jason Splett (Ward 8) and Tyson Tame (Ward 10).

Shaluk, treasurer for the Riverbank Discovery Centre, held a close lead over Karrouze throughout the evening and won the ward by an unofficial margin of 49 votes, receiving 688 votes compared to 639 for Karrouze.

Shaluk said face-to-face conversations with voters contributed to the “good momentum” that ultimately won him the city’s most northern ward.

He said he wants to get acquainted with “nuts and bolts” of the job first, but “when the time is right,” Shaluk said he hopes to bring ideas forward for new revenue streams and begin hosting ward meetings for the area residents.

In Ward 2, where Coun. Kris Desjarlais decided last year he would not seek re-election, four candidates took a shot at representing the area.

The polling race in the downtown ward was close throughout the evening, but Ross won with 309 votes, defeating Sonikile Tembo (232 votes), Buchi Onuke (107) and Sunday Frangi (82).

Ross said his campaign strategy focused on “identified voters.”

“We focused on seniors (and) we focused on people who are generally ignored,” Ross said.

“I think we ran an efficient campaign, a focused campaign, and it paid off tonight,” he said.

Ross said he’s excited to work with the new faces on council, and the familiar ones he’s known for many years.

“There’s a lot of skill and experience around that table, and I think we can do good work,” he said.

Woychyshyn narrowly won in Ward 9 with a total of 281 votes in the unofficial count, compared to 263 votes for Scott Pedlow and 219 for Keith Waterfield. She is now the only woman on council.

She said she guessed it would be a close call but is “looking forward” to working with Waterfield and the museum while on council.

“I’ve been to six council meetings in person before this election and I always wanted to put my hand up and say something, so I’m looking forward to being able to actually do that,” Woychyshyn said.

She added “it’s going to be a challenge being the only woman” on council.

“I was hoping that there would be more women on council with me, (but) I think I can hold my own,” she said.

In Ward 3, Coun. Barry Cullen chose not to run, and Shanks is the political newcomer who will represent the ward after finishing the night with 568 votes, defeating Kevin Chambers (317 votes), Quentin Derhak (302) and Enver Naidoo (143).

Shanks, the only candidate who lives in the ward, was able to hold onto his lead in the polls throughout the evening and said he’s “pleasantly surprised with the amount of support that I received.”

“The previous three councillors all were, you know, residents of the ward, and I think it’s a big thing for Ward 3. The people want to be represented by somebody who lives here,” he said.

Shanks said an incumbent councillor gave him a heads-up about the “steep” learning curve after being elected to council.

“It’s like drinking from a firehouse, he said, so looking forward to learning lots over the next little while and I just want to be a voice for the ward,” Shanks said.

One of the familiar faces returning to council is Cameron in Ward 4, who received 1,058 votes, easily beating political aficionado James Epp, who received 115 votes.

Cameron will begin his third term representing Ward 4 and said his success in the polls came from resident engagement.

“Our campaign team was small … but we were able to engage with residents and get out and knock on doors,” Cameron said. “I think that’s ultimately where elections are won.”

He added: “I built the campaign around what residents were sharing with me on the doorsteps.”

Cameron said traffic within the ward is important to residents and he’s looking forward to working on keeping costs sustainable for residents and ensuring “infrastructure is being looked after.”

Hildebrand, who was elected to represent Ward 5 in 2022, will begin his second term as a city councillor after defeating Bhavesh Patel, receiving 766 votes compared to Patel’s 249.

“It’s a humbling thing to have somebody say, ‘Go ahead and put a sign in (my) yard’ and then for them to actually make an effort to go out and put a mark beside your name,” Hildebrand said.

Hildebrand said he “continued to check in with residents throughout the last four years,” and responded to concerns or issues quickly.

“And that translates into responsiveness and continued support,” he said.

“I think with the experience that I have and others that are returning have, I think that’ll translate into us getting a few more things done as we’ve learned the process and understand what our role is better,” Hildebrand said.

In Ward 7, Berry will keep his title as the longest-serving councillor on the new council. Berry received 970 votes, well ahead of challenger Quentin Robinson, who had 485 votes.

Splett will begin his second term representing Ward 8 after receiving 618 votes and defeating political newbies Ketan Patel, who had 202 votes, and Dhara Patel (no relation), who received 94 votes.

In Ward 10, Tame will begin his second term on council after defeating Mitesh Patel with 720 votes compared to Patel’s 328.

Tame said he was “surprised there’s as much gap as there is” in the result.

“I actually entered the evening thinking it would be tighter than this,” Tame said.

He said his social media presence resonated with voters throughout the campaign.

“I think it maybe showed who I am as a person, and I think maybe people resonated with that,” Tame said.

“I really love the job, so I’m really happy to get the opportunity to do it for four more years,” he said.

In Ward 6, Coun. Bruce Luebke will continue to represent the ward for his third term as the only acclaimed candidate.

» rgerrard@brandonsun.com, with files from Alex Lambert