The 2007 Edmonton municipal election was held Monday, October 15, 2007, to elect a
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
and 12
councillor
A councillor, alternatively councilman, councilwoman, councilperson, or council member, is someone who sits on, votes in, or is a member of, a council. This is typically an elected representative of an electoral district in a municipal or re ...
s to the
city council
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...
, eight of the nine
trustee
Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, refers to anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the ...
s to
Edmonton Public Schools, and four of the seven trustees to the
Edmonton Catholic Schools. One
incumbent
The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position. In an election, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the position that is up for election, regardless of whether they are seeking re-election.
There may or may not be ...
public school trustee had no challengers, and three separate school trustee candidates (one being an incumbent) were unchallenged. Since 1968, provincial legislation has required
every municipality to hold triennial elections. Of the estimated 560,117 eligible voters, only 152,576 turned in a ballot, a voter turnout of 27.2%.
[
This was the last Edmonton city election to be held with multiple members elected in a contest. On July 22, 2009, City Council voted to change the electoral system of six wards electing two councillors each, to a system of 12 wards; each ward to be represented by a single councillor. The changes took effect for the 2010 election.
]
Candidates
Bold indicates elected, ''italics'' indicates incumbent.
Mayor
Councillors
Each voter could cast two votes. Plurality block voting
Plurality block voting is a type of block voting method for multi-winner elections. Each voter may cast as many votes as the number of seats to be filled. The candidates with the most votes are elected. The usual result when the candidates div ...
was used to elect members.
Public school trustees
Separate school trustees
One trustee is elected from each ward, and the non-victorious candidate with the most total votes is also elected.[
Jim Urlacher served as the trustee from Ward 2 until his death on May 16, 2009.
]
Reaction
Mayoral
Incumbent Stephen Mandel won an absolute majority of the votes for mayor, far ahead of the second candidate Don Koziak, however the lack of a close race left voter turnout
In political science, voter turnout is the participation rate (often defined as those who cast a ballot) of a given election. This is typically either the percentage of Voter registration, registered voters, Suffrage, eligible voters, or all Voti ...
very low, 27 percent.
Council
Ward 4
Ben Henderson just managed to fend off Lewis Cardinal by 184 to fill the vacant seat.
Ward 5
Ward 5 provided the biggest surprise of the election as incumbent and former mayoral candidate Mike Nickel was upset by 28-year-old newcomer Don Iveson. Iveson received 2,000 more votes than Nickel. Nickel was the only incumbent not re-elected.[
]
Ward 6
This ward was exceptionally close with just 466 votes separating first and third place.
Candidates summaries
(''Italics'' indicate incumbent)
Mayor
*Dustin Becker - heavy equipment operator
Councillors
Ward 1
*Betty Kennedy
*Andrew Knack - retail manager
*'' Karen Leibovici'' - incumbent
*'' Linda Sloan'' - incumbent
Ward 2
*Jabin Caouette - finished ninth in the 2004 Ward 2 race
*'' Ron Hayter'' - incumbent
*Kerry Hutton - finished seventh in the 2004 Ward 2 race
*''Kim Krushell'' - incumbent
*Dave Loken - finished third in the 2004 Ward 2 race
*Shelley Tupper - federal employee
Ward 3
*Kyle Balombin - finished fifth in the 2004 Ward 3 race
* Tony Caterina - finished third in the 2004 Ward 3 race
*'' Ed Gibbons'' - incumbent
*Shiu Wing Mak - internet technician
*Chris Martin - CBC production assistant
*Chris Roehrs
*Thomas James Tomilson - finished seventh in the 2004 mayor race
*Harvey Voogd - political activist
Ward 4
With the retirement of Michael Phair
Michael Albert Phair (born August 1950) is a Canadian politician, who served on Edmonton City Council from 1992 until 2007. He was the first openly gay elected politician in the province of Alberta
Alberta is a Provinces and territories of ...
from Ward 4, at least one new face from Ward 4 would have a spot on Council.
*'' Jane Batty'' - incumbent
*Nyambura Mia Belcourt
*Lewis Cardinal
*Jodi Flatt
*Ben Henderson - theatre director
Ward 5
*'' Bryan Anderson'' - incumbent
*Don Iveson
Donald L. Iveson (born May 30, 1979) is a Canadians, Canadian politician who served as mayor of Edmonton from 2013 to 2021. He was first elected as mayor in the 2013 Edmonton municipal election, 2013 municipal election with 62% of the vote, and w ...
- non-profit manager
*Brent Michalyk - carpenter, president of community league
*'' Mike Nickel'' - incumbent
Ward 6
With the retirement of Terry Cavanagh from Ward 6, at least one new face from Ward 6 would have a spot on Council.
*Lori G. Jeffrey-Heaney - former councilor and then mayor of Val Quentin, Alberta
*Chuck McKenna - transit operator, independent consultant
*Chinwe Okelu - finished third in the 2004 Ward 6 race
* Amarjeet Sohi - transit operator
*'' Dave Thiele'' - incumbent
*Tomas Dennis Vasquez - program co-ordinator
References
External links
City of Edmonton: Edmonton Elections
{{Edmonton elections
2007
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...