Amarjeet Sohi is Edmonton's next mayor; record number of women elected
Author of the article: Ashley Joannou, Dustin Cook, Jonny Wakefield
Publishing date:Oct 19, 2021 
Ballot processors prepare municipal election ballots to be counted at the Prince of Wales Armoury on Monday, Oct. 18, 2021 in Edmonton. PHOTO BY GREG SOUTHAM /Postmedia
Amarjeet Sohi is Edmonton’s next mayor, making him the first person of colour to lead the city.
Sohi, who beat out nearest competitor and former city councillor Mike Nickel in Monday’s municipal election , will lead the most diverse council in Edmonton’s history, with eight women and four people of colour at the table of 13, both new records in council chambers.
The mayor-elect said the diverse council will better reflect Edmonton as a whole and lead to better decisions as a result.
“I always believe that our public institutions including our city council should be reflective of our city. For far, far, far too long women, Indigenous and racialized Edmontonians have not had a space at the table and I’m glad that now that is happening and now we can work together,” he said in an interview with Postmedia.
“I think diversity is important in many ways, not only in the reflection of the city, but also diversity means people coming from different perspectives, from different lived experiences coming to the decision-making table to have those innovative and different perspectives in solving issues and I’m absolutely excited to be working with the new council.”
In keeping with his campaign’s populist tone, Nickel’s camp gathered at a sports bar in Oliver, where supporters and sports fans mingled as the clock ticked down to the close of polls. Compared to Sohi’s event at the Matrix Hotel, the scene at 1st RND was rowdy, with supporters chanting “Mike” whenever news crews carried live hits from the restaurant.
Nickel thanked his friends and supporters in defeat.
“We fought. We fought the good fight,” he said.
“This has not been a waste. We’ve given voice to thousands of thousands of Edmontonians who wanted real change in this city.”
But he warned people who voted for the status quo that “tough times are ahead.”
Late Monday, outgoing mayor Don Iveson issued a statement congratulating Sohi on his win.
“I’ve had the pleasure of working with mayor-elect Sohi during his time as city councillor and have always appreciated and been inspired by, how hard he has worked for our community. I have no doubt Edmonton will thrive under his leadership,” he said.
In total, 11 people put their names forward for the mayor’s job.
Mayoral candidate Kim Krushell takes a photo with a supporter at her headquarters on election night at the Edmonton Inn & Conference Centre in Edmonton, on Monday, Oct. 18, 2021. Photo by Ian Kucerak Postmedia
Supporters of Kim Krush ell, who placed third, continued to watch campaign coverage on a large TV at her headquarters on election night at the Edmonton Inn & Conference Centre.
“We didn’t do a negative campaign and I’m proud of that,” Krush ell said. “We did a clean campaign. I’m fine with whatever the democratic process gives us.”
Two dozen supporters of candidate Cheryll Watson, who placed fifth, gathered in her campaign office on Jasper Avenue watching Sohi’s speech on a projection screen.
“I feel incredibly proud of the campaign we ran,” Watson told Postmedia. “I hope that people remember one thing — that strong, smart, committed women can do this. My team pushed me hard to challenge the status quo and to provide an alternative to the traditional representation they normally see.”
Fourth place finisher Michael Oshry, speaking with Postmedia by telephone, said he’s proud of the campaign his team ran even though he’s disappointed with the result.
“I wish Amarjeet (Sohi) the best of luck,” he said.
Record number of women on council
Among the eight women elected Monday, Sarah Hamilton, will be returning for a second term as councillor in Ward sipiwiyiniwak.
“We’ve been talking about it for two, maybe three election cycles now, the need to have more representation of women on city council,” she said.
Hamilton highlighted the work of councillor Bev Esslinger, who helped establish policies like parental leave and made women’s issues more visible.
“Edmonton is a young city and I think the diversity that we’re seeing on council with this election represents the changes that are happening in the city,” she said.
Keren Tang was elected for Ward Karhiio, making her one of the first non-white women to ever win a seat at city hall.
“This is a really important issue for me, it’s one of the reasons I wanted to run back in 2017. I wanted our leadership to reflect our communities in this city and I didn’t see that,” Tang said.
Ashley Salvador celebrates winning her seat as city councillor in Ward Métis on Monday, Oct. 18, 2021 in Edmonton. PHOTO BY GREG SOUTHAM /Postmedia
Political newcomer Ashley Salvador will represent Ward Métis after winning a wide-open race with no incumbent Monday night.
As of late Monday, Salvador held a healthy lead over her closest competitor, Caroline Matthews, among 10 other candidates officially on the ballot.
Southeast Edmonton will be represented by Jo-Anne Wright who beat out incumbent Moe Banga in Ward Sspomitapi and Karen Principe unseated incumbent Jon Dziadyk to win Ward tastawiyiniwak.
In Ward O-day’min, the city’s most crowded contest, newcomer Anne Stevenson took the wide-open race over her nearest competitor, Gabrielle Battiste. Incumbent Tony Caterina trailed in fifth place.
Although two races were too close to call, a woman will represent both wards on council. In the northwest Ward Anirniq, Erin Rutherford led incumbent Bev Esslinger in a tight race with three polls still to come.
In Ward Ipiihkoohkanipiaohtsi, Jennifer Rice had a razor-thin lead over Rhiannon Hoyle also with three polls outstanding.
Edmonton Elections said late Monday that no more results were expected until Tuesday morning.
Elsewhere in the city, Aaron Paquette won a second term on city council and the seat for Ward Dene.
“I’m going to put everything I’ve got into the next four years to make sure that our communities in the northeast and Edmonton is poised to face the upcoming and exciting challenges,” Paquette told Postmedia Monday evening.
Incumbent Tim Cartmell was also re-elected to a second term. At late Monday, Cartmell held a sizeable lead in Ward pihêsiwin over his lone challenger, Guiscela Perez Arellano.
“I’m very thankful for the opportunity to get back to city hall and I’m excited about getting there and working hard,” Cartmell told Postmedia Monday night. “It’s a great night, a great result, we’ll celebrate a little bit tonight and get to work tomorrow.”
Northwest Edmonton voters again chose Andrew Knack to represent them at city hall, this time giving him a seat in the newly-created Ward Nakota Isga.
The two-term Ward 1 councillor showed a significant lead over his two opponents with some polls still to be counted Monday night. Challengers Dave Olivier and Steve Weston trailed the incumbent by a wide margin, with Weston coming in last place.
Former Edmonton Public Schools trustee Michael Janz was elected as city councillor in Ward papastew.
He had a sizable lead over the current runner-up Susan Field late Monday, who was slightly ahead of Kirsten Goa
.
Voter lineup at a polling station in the Sspomitapi riding (formerly Ward 12) at Father Michael Troy School in Edmonton, October 18, 2021. Ed Kaiser/Postmedia
Advance polls see high turnout
Historically, municipal elections in Edmonton have low voter turnout. In 2017, only 31.5 per cent of eligible voters cast a ballot. However, higher-than-usual turnout at 10 days worth of advance polls earlier this month could be a sign that the 2021 election bucked that trend.
About 10 per cent of eligible voters cast their ballots as part of advance polls. That’s more who cast ballots through advance polling than in the last two civic elections combined.
According to Edmonton Elections, 63,834 voters cast ballots across 12 advance polling stations. The number of early voters is up from 26,198 in 2017, and 21,024 in 2013.
New boundaries/names
Monday’s election was the first using both new boundaries for the 12 wards and new names.
Earlier this year, council approved the 12 new Indigenous names for the wards. The co-chairman of the Indigenous naming committee that made the recommendations said at the time that all of the Indigenous languages within Treaty 6 are represented and many of the names were chosen to directly suit the area of Edmonton which they represent.
Edmonton public to get at least seven new school trustees
Along with municipal officials, Edmontonians were also asked to vote for school trustees in either the public or Catholic division.
The vote for school trustees to make up the public school board ended with many new faces in charge. Only two of the nine incumbents sought re-election this year. A full list of the winners can be found here .
The opposite is true for the Catholic board where six of the seven incumbent trustees were acclaimed and retook their seats. Only ward 77 in the city’s southeast has candidates fighting for a win on the ballot.
All six trustee candidates for Conseil scolaire Centre-Nord, the francophone school division including the city of Edmonton, were acclaimed.
Final Senate and referendum results coming next week
Along with choosing their local municipal politicians and school trustees, voters at polling stations around Alberta were given a second ballot to vote on provincial referendums and Senate picks .
Albertans were asked if they want the province to adopt year-round daylight saving time and whether Canada’s commitment to the principle of making equalization payments should be removed from the country’s constitution.
Alberta does not have the power to change the equalization formula on its own but Premier Jason Kenney has called equalization a symbol of the “unfairness” Alberta faces in confederation and said that if the majority vote to remove that section it will give Albertans “leverage” when trying to negotiate a “fair deal” with Ottawa.
Others have argued that constitutional amendments should not be used as threats to achieve something else and that proposing a change that Alberta can’t actually achieve is inappropriate.
Albertans also don’t have the authority to elect senators — senators are appointed by the federal government — but the top three of the 13 candidates on the ballot will be put forward by the Alberta government for consideration by Ottawa.
For both the referendum and Senate questions, Albertans will have to wait until next week for the final results.
Elections Alberta will release the official full results on Oct. 26. While some municipalities have plans to release their individual results earlier, Edmonton officials have said the city’s results will be part of the grand total next week.
– With files from Anna Junker, Lisa Johnson, Lauren Boothby, Hamdi Issawi, Blair McBride, Kellen Taniguchi
Author of the article: Ashley Joannou, Dustin Cook, Jonny Wakefield
Publishing date:Oct 19, 2021
Amarjeet Sohi is Edmonton’s next mayor, making him the first person of colour to lead the city.
Sohi, who beat out nearest competitor and former city councillor Mike Nickel in Monday’s municipal election , will lead the most diverse council in Edmonton’s history, with eight women and four people of colour at the table of 13, both new records in council chambers.
The mayor-elect said the diverse council will better reflect Edmonton as a whole and lead to better decisions as a result.
“I always believe that our public institutions including our city council should be reflective of our city. For far, far, far too long women, Indigenous and racialized Edmontonians have not had a space at the table and I’m glad that now that is happening and now we can work together,” he said in an interview with Postmedia.
“I think diversity is important in many ways, not only in the reflection of the city, but also diversity means people coming from different perspectives, from different lived experiences coming to the decision-making table to have those innovative and different perspectives in solving issues and I’m absolutely excited to be working with the new council.”
In keeping with his campaign’s populist tone, Nickel’s camp gathered at a sports bar in Oliver, where supporters and sports fans mingled as the clock ticked down to the close of polls. Compared to Sohi’s event at the Matrix Hotel, the scene at 1st RND was rowdy, with supporters chanting “Mike” whenever news crews carried live hits from the restaurant.
Nickel thanked his friends and supporters in defeat.
“We fought. We fought the good fight,” he said.
“This has not been a waste. We’ve given voice to thousands of thousands of Edmontonians who wanted real change in this city.”
But he warned people who voted for the status quo that “tough times are ahead.”
Late Monday, outgoing mayor Don Iveson issued a statement congratulating Sohi on his win.
“I’ve had the pleasure of working with mayor-elect Sohi during his time as city councillor and have always appreciated and been inspired by, how hard he has worked for our community. I have no doubt Edmonton will thrive under his leadership,” he said.
In total, 11 people put their names forward for the mayor’s job.
Supporters of Kim Krush ell, who placed third, continued to watch campaign coverage on a large TV at her headquarters on election night at the Edmonton Inn & Conference Centre.
“We didn’t do a negative campaign and I’m proud of that,” Krush ell said. “We did a clean campaign. I’m fine with whatever the democratic process gives us.”
Two dozen supporters of candidate Cheryll Watson, who placed fifth, gathered in her campaign office on Jasper Avenue watching Sohi’s speech on a projection screen.
“I feel incredibly proud of the campaign we ran,” Watson told Postmedia. “I hope that people remember one thing — that strong, smart, committed women can do this. My team pushed me hard to challenge the status quo and to provide an alternative to the traditional representation they normally see.”
Fourth place finisher Michael Oshry, speaking with Postmedia by telephone, said he’s proud of the campaign his team ran even though he’s disappointed with the result.
“I wish Amarjeet (Sohi) the best of luck,” he said.
Record number of women on council
Among the eight women elected Monday, Sarah Hamilton, will be returning for a second term as councillor in Ward sipiwiyiniwak.
“We’ve been talking about it for two, maybe three election cycles now, the need to have more representation of women on city council,” she said.
Hamilton highlighted the work of councillor Bev Esslinger, who helped establish policies like parental leave and made women’s issues more visible.
“Edmonton is a young city and I think the diversity that we’re seeing on council with this election represents the changes that are happening in the city,” she said.
Keren Tang was elected for Ward Karhiio, making her one of the first non-white women to ever win a seat at city hall.
“This is a really important issue for me, it’s one of the reasons I wanted to run back in 2017. I wanted our leadership to reflect our communities in this city and I didn’t see that,” Tang said.
Political newcomer Ashley Salvador will represent Ward Métis after winning a wide-open race with no incumbent Monday night.
As of late Monday, Salvador held a healthy lead over her closest competitor, Caroline Matthews, among 10 other candidates officially on the ballot.
Southeast Edmonton will be represented by Jo-Anne Wright who beat out incumbent Moe Banga in Ward Sspomitapi and Karen Principe unseated incumbent Jon Dziadyk to win Ward tastawiyiniwak.
In Ward O-day’min, the city’s most crowded contest, newcomer Anne Stevenson took the wide-open race over her nearest competitor, Gabrielle Battiste. Incumbent Tony Caterina trailed in fifth place.
Although two races were too close to call, a woman will represent both wards on council. In the northwest Ward Anirniq, Erin Rutherford led incumbent Bev Esslinger in a tight race with three polls still to come.
In Ward Ipiihkoohkanipiaohtsi, Jennifer Rice had a razor-thin lead over Rhiannon Hoyle also with three polls outstanding.
Edmonton Elections said late Monday that no more results were expected until Tuesday morning.
Elsewhere in the city, Aaron Paquette won a second term on city council and the seat for Ward Dene.
“I’m going to put everything I’ve got into the next four years to make sure that our communities in the northeast and Edmonton is poised to face the upcoming and exciting challenges,” Paquette told Postmedia Monday evening.
Incumbent Tim Cartmell was also re-elected to a second term. At late Monday, Cartmell held a sizeable lead in Ward pihêsiwin over his lone challenger, Guiscela Perez Arellano.
“I’m very thankful for the opportunity to get back to city hall and I’m excited about getting there and working hard,” Cartmell told Postmedia Monday night. “It’s a great night, a great result, we’ll celebrate a little bit tonight and get to work tomorrow.”
Northwest Edmonton voters again chose Andrew Knack to represent them at city hall, this time giving him a seat in the newly-created Ward Nakota Isga.
The two-term Ward 1 councillor showed a significant lead over his two opponents with some polls still to be counted Monday night. Challengers Dave Olivier and Steve Weston trailed the incumbent by a wide margin, with Weston coming in last place.
Former Edmonton Public Schools trustee Michael Janz was elected as city councillor in Ward papastew.
He had a sizable lead over the current runner-up Susan Field late Monday, who was slightly ahead of Kirsten Goa
Advance polls see high turnout
Historically, municipal elections in Edmonton have low voter turnout. In 2017, only 31.5 per cent of eligible voters cast a ballot. However, higher-than-usual turnout at 10 days worth of advance polls earlier this month could be a sign that the 2021 election bucked that trend.
About 10 per cent of eligible voters cast their ballots as part of advance polls. That’s more who cast ballots through advance polling than in the last two civic elections combined.
According to Edmonton Elections, 63,834 voters cast ballots across 12 advance polling stations. The number of early voters is up from 26,198 in 2017, and 21,024 in 2013.
New boundaries/names
Monday’s election was the first using both new boundaries for the 12 wards and new names.
Earlier this year, council approved the 12 new Indigenous names for the wards. The co-chairman of the Indigenous naming committee that made the recommendations said at the time that all of the Indigenous languages within Treaty 6 are represented and many of the names were chosen to directly suit the area of Edmonton which they represent.
Edmonton public to get at least seven new school trustees
Along with municipal officials, Edmontonians were also asked to vote for school trustees in either the public or Catholic division.
The vote for school trustees to make up the public school board ended with many new faces in charge. Only two of the nine incumbents sought re-election this year. A full list of the winners can be found here .
The opposite is true for the Catholic board where six of the seven incumbent trustees were acclaimed and retook their seats. Only ward 77 in the city’s southeast has candidates fighting for a win on the ballot.
All six trustee candidates for Conseil scolaire Centre-Nord, the francophone school division including the city of Edmonton, were acclaimed.
Final Senate and referendum results coming next week
Along with choosing their local municipal politicians and school trustees, voters at polling stations around Alberta were given a second ballot to vote on provincial referendums and Senate picks .
Albertans were asked if they want the province to adopt year-round daylight saving time and whether Canada’s commitment to the principle of making equalization payments should be removed from the country’s constitution.
Alberta does not have the power to change the equalization formula on its own but Premier Jason Kenney has called equalization a symbol of the “unfairness” Alberta faces in confederation and said that if the majority vote to remove that section it will give Albertans “leverage” when trying to negotiate a “fair deal” with Ottawa.
Others have argued that constitutional amendments should not be used as threats to achieve something else and that proposing a change that Alberta can’t actually achieve is inappropriate.
Albertans also don’t have the authority to elect senators — senators are appointed by the federal government — but the top three of the 13 candidates on the ballot will be put forward by the Alberta government for consideration by Ottawa.
For both the referendum and Senate questions, Albertans will have to wait until next week for the final results.
Elections Alberta will release the official full results on Oct. 26. While some municipalities have plans to release their individual results earlier, Edmonton officials have said the city’s results will be part of the grand total next week.
– With files from Anna Junker, Lisa Johnson, Lauren Boothby, Hamdi Issawi, Blair McBride, Kellen Taniguchi
Amarjeet Sohi elected Edmonton's first mayor of South Asian origin
New city council will have 8 women; 4 incumbent
councillors defeated
Former city councillor and federal Liberal cabinet minister Amarjeet Sohi will become Edmonton's first mayor of South Asian origin.
Sohi, who was born in Punjab, India in 1964, rolled to a commanding victory in Monday's municipal election. With more than 98 per cent of voting stations reporting, Sohi had a lead of 45,273 votes over Mike Nickel, his closest challenger.
Sohi will lead a council with eight women, up from two on the previous council.
Four incumbents went down to defeat — Tony Caterina, Jon Dziadyk, Moe Banga and Bev Esslinger.
Sohi, 57, delivered his victory speech at the Matrix Hotel in downtown Edmonton with his wife, Sarbjeet, and their daughter, Seerat, by his side.
He spoke about immigrating to Canada at the age of 18 with little in the way of material possessions.
"I had a mission and dreams to build a better life in a new home, dreams that sometimes seemed impossible," he said.
"And today because of you, because of everyone in this room, we have made the impossible possible."
Sohi also acknowledged the challenges Edmontonians have been facing in the past few years and said he's committed to building a thriving city.
He vowed to tackle racism and discrimination "on our streets and in our institutions," and said vulnerable city residents won't be left behind.
"So let's get to work; let's build a city that's a place of opportunity for all."
Sohi had more than 45 per cent of the overall votes, compared to Nickel's 25 per cent.
Voter turnout was 36.6 per cent, Edmonton Elections said.
Sohi was up against 10 other candidates in the mayoral race.
Asks for help from province
He is set to become Edmonton's 36th mayor, replacing Don Iveson, who served two terms as mayor starting in 2013 and didn't run this time around.
Kim Krushell was in third place with more than 17 per cent of the vote. Michael Oshry was in fourth place with six per cent of the vote.
Like Sohi, Nickel, Krushell and Oshry are all former city councillors.
Sohi said the city will need help from the provincial government to continue fighting the fourth wave of COVID-19, to help end homelessness and to help support mental health.
Edmonton will also need help from the province "to fight a drug-poisoning epidemic that's claiming the lives of neighbours, friends and family members at a record and unconscionable rate," he said. "It must stop."
Council has a new look
Incumbent Tony Caterina lost to Anne Stevenson in Ward O-day'min, while incumbent Jon Dziadyk lost to Karen Principe in Ward tastawiyiniwak.
Incumbent Moe Banga lost to Jo-Anne Wright in Ward Sspomitapi.
Stevenson and Principe will be joined on council by other newcomers Michael Janz in Ward papastew, Ashley Salvador in Ward Métis and Keren Tang in Ward Karhiio.
Voters re-elected incumbents Aaron Paquette in Ward Dene, Tim Cartmell in Ward pihêsiwin, Andrew Knack in Ward Nakota Isga and Sarah Hamilton in Ward sipiwiyiniwak.
On Tuesday morning, with all polls reporting, results were in for two of the tightest races of the election — wards Anirniq and Ipiihkoohkanipiaohtsi.
Erin Rutherford has been named the winner In Ward Anirniq, defeating incumbent Bev Esslinger by 266 votes.
In Ward Ipiihkoohkanipiaohtsi, Jennifer Rice narrowly defeated Rhiannon Hoyle by 39 votes.
All results are unofficial. They are to be confirmed by noon on Oct. 22.
Former MP, bus driver
First elected to Edmonton city council in 2007, Sohi spent eight years as a councillor before making a run for federal politics as a Liberal in 2015.
He was elected Member of Parliament for Edmonton Mill Woods. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed Sohi to his first cabinet as minister of infrastructure and communities.
Sohi took over the natural resources portfolio in 2018. He has been an advocate for investment in Edmonton's LRT system.
A former bus driver for Edmonton Transit, Sohi has been teaching collaborative and inclusive leadership at MacEwan University since 2019.
Nickel concedes defeat
Nickel, a vocal critic of LRT expansion and the city's spending decisions, campaigned on tax cuts and enhancing safety and community policing.
He conceded defeat in a speech to his supporters, and said that he "and no one else" bears responsibility for the loss.
"We fought the good fight," said Nickel, 56.
"To all the volunteers and donors, let's be clear. This has not been a waste. You have given voice to thousands upon thousands of Edmontonians who wanted real change, who wanted real change in this city.
"This campaign was about freedom and opportunity for the ordinary Edmontonian. And this campaign gave voice to change."
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Jyoti Gondek at her campaign headquarters after being elected as Calgary Mayor on Monday, October 18, 2021. PHOTO BY AZIN GHAFFARI/POSTMEDIA
