A timely push for more women on city council

Many Brandon residents may not be aware of this fact, but this past January marked a very special anniversary when it comes to the city’s election history.

Rhoda E. Power had been a teacher in Brandon at Assiniboine School on 13th Street North between 1917 and 1919 before moving to Minnedosa around 1921. As outlined by Manitoba writer Christian Cassidy in his history blog West End Dumplings, Rhoda met and married George A. Tennant, a CPR brakeman, before moving back to Brandon in 1935.

This was around the peak of the Great Depression, and the city itself was suffering from lack of cash and services.

“The city cut many services to the bone, or did away with them altogether, and was living on lines of credit just to pay the bills for their massive Depression relief costs,” Cassidy wrote.

Curiously, it was at this difficult time, 90 years ago, that Mrs. Tennant decided to run for city council, and that Brandon elected its first woman alderman in November 1935. But it was on Jan. 7, 1936 that the new council held its inaugural meeting.

Though she only served one two-year term around the council table, Ald. Tennant was named to some challenging committees, including the finance committee and the welfare relief committee. She also chaired the children’s welfare committee.

But Brandon’s financial picture was only growing worse, and Mrs. Tennant was part of a council that witnessed the city essentially declare bankruptcy and go under the financial administration of what was then known as the Municipal and Public Utility Board.

Cassidy noted that it would take nearly 20 years before Brandon came out of receivership.

Why is this little history lesson important?

It’s because Brandon — and Manitoba generally — are once again in challenging times, though perhaps not as dire as the Great Depression.

Yet we do have rising costs for city growth to the tune of tens of millions of dollars in debentures that we will spend the next few decades paying off. This has come at a significant cost to area residents, who have watched taxes rise significantly over the last three years.

Just this year, Brandon City Council approved a 6.7 per cent municipal property tax increase for 2026 that was driven by a total tax requirement rise of 7.4 per cent. In 2025, it was 6.9 per cent and in 2024, it was 9.4 per cent. Even as taxes rise, city services are facing significant strain due to aging infrastructure and growing demand.

At the same time, the Brandon School Division board of trustees has recommended this past week a 7.25 per cent education property tax increase as part of its 2026-27 preliminary budget — mostly as a means to make up for a financial shortfall as teachers’ salaries are harmonized across the province.

And 2026 is an election year for both municipalities and school boards. This is the time to start giving consideration to running for office.

We already seem to have two mayoral candidates — Mayor Jeff Fawcett has indicated he intends to run again, while former city councillor and Brandon East Tory MLA Len Isliefson announced his candidacy about a year ago.

Our office is also hearing that several wards may be open this October as current councillors decide not to run again. One of these is Ward 2, currently held by Coun. Kris Desjarlais, who has publicly stated he does not intend to run again. And, unofficially, we are hearing of others looking to move on.

The last several municipal elections in Brandon have displayed a nasty tendency for councillors to be acclaimed. Over the last two decades, at least nine city councillor positions have been filled by acclamation — four of those in the last election alone.

If there is one goal that we can hope for in this fall’s municipal election, it would be that no seat around Brandon’s council table is simply acclaimed.

We understand how difficult it can be to juggle a job, a home life, and take on a councillor position at the same time. It’s a definite time commitment, one that trips up both men and women alike.

But there are important decisions to be made around the council table in the coming years, particularly regarding Brandon’s future growth, the city’s ongoing financial burden and our ongoing infrastructure deficit. We need Brandonites to take an interest in their city and step up.

To that point, we are glad to see that there is already significant effort from a group of local women who are encouraging other women to run for council. Brandon-based Her Seat at the Table will host a panel discussion on Tuesday, offering up a slate of five women panellists who can answer questions for those who are considering a run.

Since Mrs. Tennant first broke that glass ceiling back in the 1930s, women councillors have been few and far between in Brandon. CBC reported in November that in the last 45 years, there have only been 10 women elected to council, and on two of those occasions, three women served on council at the same time.

Perhaps it’s time for a fresh perspective around the council table. With only one woman serving on council right now, there’s certainly room for improvement.