Some more endorsements

Here are eight more endorsements that were not easy but still not the hardest. The wards covered in this post include both incumbent wards and open wards.  I’ve done my best to compare the candidates websites, their debate performances and whatever else I could find around the web. I’ll be blunt. I tried to find wards where woman would be the best choice because Ottawa City Council desperately needs more women but as you will read, that was not always the determining factor.

Ward 2 Innes – Laura Dudas – Dudas is a motorcycling,  stand out candidate in a crowded field. She knows how city hall works and how to get things done. She also knows the issues beyond just what is written in the press and would be a great addition to council.  What’s interesting about this slate of candidates, it is very diverse and that’s is impressive in of itself however, some candidates are not ready for prime time.  I hope they continue to engage in city politics and put their name forward in the future.

Ward 4 Kanata North – Matt Muirhead – Muirhead is a candidate whose time has come. Council needs some more conservative voices to balance the strong social inclination that is the current make up of City Hall.  He is an independent thinker and not afraid to speak his mind. He is not a crowd follower and I like that. As for the incumbent, Wilkinson has done so much for the ward and for Kanata as a whole but everything has its time.  After a nice visit, it’s time for the guests to leave no matter how much I like them stopping by.

Ward 12 Rideau-Vanier – Mathieu Fleury – Fleury is one of the newbies from 2010 that has grown immensely since being elected.  I didn’t endorse him in the easy round because he has stiff competition in both Marc Aubin and Catherine Fortin LeFaivre who are both very impressive in their own right. But Fleury has handled the issues in his ward as well as could be expected and conflict of interest issues were dealt with correctly and openly. This is what we should expect from elected officials. He is a hard worker and dedicated to getting things done.

Ward 14 Somerset – Martin Canning – Canning knows Somerset ward as well as anyone having literally walked almost every inch of it (he doesn’t own a car and I don’t think he even has a bike). Canning also has a heart that beats green as a committed environmentalist. What I like the most about Canning is his outreach to the leaders in the community and his willingness to listen. Somerset needs resist the temptation of voting for the same as before. This is a rare opportunity to make a change in temperament while keeping to the soul of the ward.

Ward 15 Kitchissippi - Michelle Reimer – For the second time, I’m not going to endorse Katherine Hobbs, not because she isn’t a good councillor, but because her opponent is a tad better. My reservations about Hobbs have proven true over the course of this term of council. She’s seems always a step behind her constituency and seems to struggle with the issues of this fast growing ward. Reimer, on the other hand, seems determined and capable to solve the issues facing Kitchissippi. Her performance in the debates give me the comfort that she is up to the job.

Ward 18 Alta Vista – Clinton Cowan – Cowan is a second time candidate and he has only improved over his last run. He understands the issues facing the ward and he is determined to represent the ward without preconditions.  This is a major difference between him and his competitor who is endorsed by the outgoing councillor. It’s time for a fresh start for Alta Vista;  a new way to share in the prosperity of Ottawa where major decisions facing the city are viewed from a new perspective as opposed to how it was done in the past.

Ward 20 Osgoode - Jean Johnston-McKitterick – Johnston-McKitterick is exactly what the rural ward needs. This well spoken candidate articulates her positions very well and is not afraid of being different from those around her. She forcefully but respectfully makes her arguments yet her tone encourages dialogue. I can see Johnston-McKitterick being a major asset in bridging the rural/urban divide.

Ward 22 Gloucester-South Nepean - Susan Sherring – Sherring’s candidacy and my hope that she wins is an experiment on if someone can get elected and resist being assimilated by the system.  She is a girls girl and usually went over the line on protecting some less than stellar performances by some councilllors in the past but she also made clear and poignant cases  calling out council has a whole when they screwed up like they did with the Orgaworld contract and green bin program.  So, should Sherring win, and I think she should, it will be interesting to see if she calls out fellow councillors and/or the mayor when they stray from the long term good of the City for short term gain or will she become one of the pack and protect the team.

For more endorsements, check out my previous post 'Getting the easy endorsements out of the way'