The civic election has come and gone. Congratulations to the successful candidates. Thank you to everyone who ran. Prince George had a broad slate of candidates to choose from and that is a lot better than many communities where mayors and council members were elected by acclamation.
However, it is sad that only 26.27 per cent of the eligible voters actually bothered to cast their vote. Mayor-elect Simon Yu won with 40.2 per cent of the votes cast but that is only 6,092 citizens or 11.1 per cent of eligible voters and 7.9 per cent of the city’s population.
There is no question Yu is the new mayor. But it is well to remember only a small fraction of the city’s population supported him and the new city council. Of course, that won’t stop people from complaining about city taxes, cost overruns, and municipal infrastructure.
But we are not going to see a riot when the new council gets sworn in. No storming of city hall nor claims of a rigged election. No court cases. What we will see is the peaceful and orderly transfer of power as Lyn Hall steps down.
It is also likely a good thing that the incumbent city councillors were re-elected. Perhaps there should have been some housecleaning but with a new mayor, and one with limited political experience, city council will have some stability and continuity. Only the three new councillors will be engaged in the learning curve involved.
With a four-year mandate, what topics will our new council tackle? What should be top of mind?
The most obvious answer is our homeless situation – although maybe the term should be “unsheltered.” Statistics Canada estimates suggest the number of unsheltered people in Prince George is only slightly above the national average, but we are one of the highest municipalities on a per capita in basis in B.C., according to the provincial government.
The difficulty with this issue is that it really is 300 issues. Blanket statements about “these people” pretend the problems are not unique to every single person who finds themselves without shelter. It is likely the unsheltered will continue to be an issue as Prince George remains a regional hub for a vast geographical area.
Not an easy suite of problems to solve.
Todd Whitcombe is a chemistry professor at UNBC.
