Now that the nomination period is over and candidate lists are official for the upcoming Manitoba Municipal Election, the Association of Manitoba Municipalities put out some stats about this year's candidates.
Most, if not all, of the trends are very positive - an increase in the overall number of candidates, a sizeable increase in the number of female candidates, and a decrease in the number of acclamations. AMM President Kathy Valentino said the stats give some positivity in a time most people view as negative.
"We always as people go to a negative narrative when we're hearing about elections and campaigns, but this was some real positive numbers, and hopefully it's a good trend moving forward for elections...it shows that our residents are engaged in what's going on in their communities, and what the future of their communities is going to look like, and that they're willing to step up and serve," said Valentino.
For Valentino especially, the 17.6% increase in the number of female candidates from last election is a big one. She's had a hand in many women-focused government events over the years, and said though there's still more work to be done to give women fair representation in governments, it's promising to see the numbers the highest they've been in recent memory.
"There's work to be done because it's still a minority, but we are super pleased to see that some of the efforts AMM's been doing is reflecting in the highest number of women putting their names forward for municipal office in the past 4 election cycles...a diverse council table, really that brings a broader range of perspectives, different experiences and different ideas to the table, and by having a diverse council, it actually will strengthen the community or municipality that that council table is representing and serving," said Valentino.
Even though the number of acclamations is around 30%, down from 37% last election, they're still something to keep in mind. Plus, some municipalities (like the RM of Dauphin) have vacancies, that will need to be filled by appointment. Valentino said acclamations and vacancies don't always mean a municipality is struggling.
"Every municipality is different, so vacancies, they do happen. But they can happen for a number of reasons, and they don't necessarily reflect the health of a municipality or council...many elected officials, they balance council meetings, the committees, the community events, they have full time jobs, and kids, and life, so it's difficult to fully understand the time and responsibility involved until you get into this role," said Valentino.
Going forward, Valentino and the Association of Manitoba Municipalities plans to keep promoting education around what councillors do in their role. This year especially, they focused on election information sessions, with several Parkland municipalities hosting their own.
