You can chalk up round four as another near unanimous decision victory for Pat Fiacco.
The former boxing champ cruised to his fourth consecutive mayoral election victory Wednesday evening, garnering just over 84 percent of the vote.
Speaking to reporters as the final poll results were coming in, Fiacco said he was pleased with the results, despite a city-wide low voter turnout.
“I was elected based on the platform that I put forward. So for those who took the time to vote, they’re going to see the great results that we’ll put forward, not only as a mayor but as a council as well,” he said.
Fiacco said Reginans can expect action on issues such as waste management and public transit in the upcoming term.
“Now we’re going to start seeing all the work that’s been done by the council from 2006 to 2009 come to fruition in the coming three years.”
First time mayoral candidate Jim Elliott came in second with more than 4,000 votes – or 11.8 percent. He said he felt his candidacy raised environmental protection and affordable housing issues among the electorate.
“I’m just hoping the response from the public gives the current council the impetus to move on some of these issues sooner rather than later,” said Elliott.
Elliott pledged to continue showing up to observe council meetings and said he plans to run again in the next municipal election in three years.
Linda A.M. White finished third with four percent of the vote.
Meanwhile, the coinciding council election brought about a few surprises.
Saskatchewan Roughrider Chris Szarka upended two-term incumbent councillor Jerry Flegel in Ward 10 and John Findura won the seat in Ward 5, defeating 24-year council veteran Bill Gray.
“I feel like I put forth a very strong campaign and I can’t thank the people who came out and helped me enough,” said Szarka.
“We were confident going in but obviously election time is a lot different. So we sat on the edge of our seats and enjoyed it as much as we could, and right now we’re living in the moment,” he added.
Findura, a service technician and second time candidate, said he was “overwhelmed” and “soaking it in” upon arriving at the council chambers to meet with his new councilmates.
In the city’s other eight wards, incumbents retained their seats.
In the two tightest races, Jocelyn Hutchinson held on by nearly 200 votes in Ward 2, while Fred Clipsham held off John Conway by 144 votes in Ward 3.
Other councillors retaining their seats include Louis Browne, Michael Fougere, Wade Murray, Sharron Bryce, Michael O’Donnell, and Terry Hincks. Fougere and Hincks won by acclamation.
The new council will be sworn in on Nov. 9.
Official results, released Friday, show voter turnout at only 24.97 percent, down from 36.5 percent in 2006.
C.B. Wilson was one of the small portion of Reginans who voted. Wilson, who volunteered for Ward 2 candidate Heather McIntyre’s campaign, was watching the results come in at City Hall Wednesday night and expressed concern about residents who chose not to vote.
“Certainly it worries me because those are the people who probably know the least amount and yet want the most – and do the most complaining. If you’re going to be a citizen, be a citizen,” said Wilson.
Elsewhere in the province, Don Atchison easily held his mayor’s seat in a four-way race in Saskatoon. All 10 incumbent councillors in the city also will return for another term.
In Moose Jaw, ex-NDP MLA and cabinet minister Glenn Hagel won the mayor’s race with 64 percent of the vote. The council race in The Friendly City brought a few surprises as two incumbents failed to retain their seats.
In Prince Albert, Jim Scarrow secured a second term as mayor, defeating Jim Stiglitz and 18-year-old Riley Simonite.
And in a battle of two ex-councillors in Swift Current, James Wilson defeated Randy Goulden by a mere 54 votes.
