Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...
,
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...
, Canada. She was a
city councillor
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 ...
from 1986 to 1992 and again from 1995 to 2002, and served on the city's Executive Policy Committee from 1997 to 1998. Timm-Rudolph ran for the
House of Commons of Canada
The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...
Mayor of Winnipeg
The mayor of Winnipeg is a member of Winnipeg City Council, but does not represent a ward.
The position of mayor was created in 1873 following the incorporation of Winnipeg. Since 1998, the term of office has been for four years.
The 44th and ...
in a 2004 by-election.
Early life and private career
Timm-Rudolph was raised in north-end Winnipeg, and was an
interior designer
Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. With a keen eye for detail and a Creativity, creative flair, an ...
before entering public life. She became a salesperson after leaving council in 1992, and established a consulting business in 2002. In 2004, she organized the charity Gold Spike Golf Tournament.
Councillor
Timm-Rudolph first ran for
Winnipeg City Council
The Winnipeg City Council () is the governing body of the city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The Council is seated in the Council Building of Winnipeg City Hall.1983 municipal election as a
New Democrat
New Democrats may refer to:
* New Democratic Party, a social democratic party in Canada
* New Democrats (United States), the ideological centrist faction of the Democratic Party
** New Democrat Coalition, the related caucus in the United States H ...
in the Springfield Heights division, and narrowly lost to Jim Ragsdill. She ran again in
1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
** Spain and Portugal en ...
as an independent, and was elected in a crowded field . She ran for the Canadian House of Commons in 1988 as a Liberal, and finished second against New Democratic Party incumbent
Bill Blaikie
William Alexander "Bill" Blaikie (June 19, 1951 – September 24, 2022) was a Canadian politician. He served as a member of Parliament (MP) from 1979 to 2008, representing Elmwood—Transcona and its antecedent ridings in the House of Commons ...
1989
1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...
, Timm-Rudolph lost to fellow councillor Rick Boychuk in
1992
1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General.
* January 6
** The Republ ...
after redistribution forced the two incumbents to face one another. The 1992 contest was marked by extreme bitterness, with Boychuk accusing Timm-Rudolph of being in a
conflict of interest
A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple wikt:interest#Noun, interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates t ...
situation. She was later cleared by a provincial investigation.
Timm-Rudolph served on the provincial Municipal Board after her 1992 defeat. She ran for re-election in
1995
1995 was designated as:
* United Nations Year for Tolerance
* World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War
This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...
, and defeated Boychuk in a rematch. During this campaign, she proposed the creation of an auxiliary police force that would take care of simple tasks and allow officers to focus on more important matters. When asked about her political ideology, she responded "dead centre". A subsequent survey of voting patterns in early 1997 found her to be one of council's most independent members, voting with or against Mayor
Susan Thompson
Susan Ann Thompson was the 40th mayor of Winnipeg, Manitoba. She was born on 12 April 1947. She was the first and first to date only woman to serve as mayor of Winnipeg, serving two terms from 1992 to 1998.
Thompson graduated with a BA from ...
's governing coalition depending on the issue.
Thompson appointed Timm-Rudolph as acting deputy mayor in November 1995, and named her to the executive policy committee (i.e. the municipal cabinet) in March 1997. She was initially the chair of the planning and services committee, and was reassigned as chair of the public works committee in November 1997. She voted against a bus fare reduction in 1998, arguing that it would lead to higher property taxes.
Timm-Rudolph was expected to face a difficult re-election contest in
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...
, but instead won without difficulty after
Russ Wyatt
Russ Wyatt (born 1970) is a Canadian politician in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He represented Transcona on the Winnipeg City Council from 2002 to 2018, and is the incumbent. And at times he served as a member of the city's executive policy committee. H ...
, her main opponent, decided to withdraw at the last minute. After the election, she became a prominent figure in the council's unofficial opposition to new mayor Glen Murray. She served on the board of the Winnipeg Convention Centre and remained a member of the public works committee, but was no longer its chair. Timm-Rudolph also served on several national boards in this period, including those of the
Federation of Canadian Municipalities
The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM, ''Fédération canadienne des municipalités'') is an advocacy group representing over 2000 Canadian municipalities. It is an organization with no formal power but significant ability to influence ...
and the Yellowhead Highway. She was a critic of Winnipeg's restrictive anti-smoking legislation, and was one of only two councillors to vote against the 2001 operating budget.
Timm-Rudolph decided not to seek re-election in
2002
The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...
, saying that she found it difficult to work with Glen Murray. She indicated that she wanted to start a consulting business and write children's books. She later said that her greatest accomplishment in office was facilitating the construction of a storm water
retention basin
A retention basin, sometimes called a retention pond, wet detention basin, or storm water management pond (SWMP), is an artificial pond with vegetation around the perimeter and a permanent pool of water in its design. It is used to manage ...
in southeast Transcona, an area often plagued by flooding.
Mayoral campaign
Timm-Rudolph was one of the first declared candidates for a 2004 mayoral by-election, which was called after Murray resigned to run for the House of Commons. She was initially considered a viable candidate, but did not establish a strong campaign organization. She finished a distant seventh against
Sam Katz
Samuel Michael Katz (born August 20, 1951) is a Canadian businessman and former politician who was the 42nd mayor of Winnipeg, Manitoba from 2004 to 2014. He is the owner of the Winnipeg Goldeyes of the American Association, as well as the ...
.She was later fined $400 for failing to file an audited financial statement. See Mary Agnes Welch, "Two more council candidates fined", ''Winnipeg Free Press'', 3 February 2006, B1.