Municipal Round-Up — July 30: Karen Sorenson Wins the Senate Election!
All The News That's Fit to Tweet
The municipal election in October isn’t just about municipal governments. Somehow, it’s about everything — as this week proved yet again. Here’s our round-up:
Alberta Senate Appointment Announced
On July 29, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed a new senator for Alberta — 80 days before Alberta votes for one.
The federal process to appoint a senator is for an independent advisory board for senate appointments to make recommendations to the prime minister.
The senator Trudeau appointed for Alberta is the current mayor of Banff, Karen Sorenson. Rage has talked with Sorenson about her advocacy for her community during COVID-19 and clashes with United Conservative Party Kananaskis MLA Miranda Rosin.
Sorenson is on her third term as mayor in addition to her six years spent as a councillor, and four years as a school-board trustee. She brings to the position both elected experience and she is non partisan.
In October, Albertans will still vote for a senator during an election that will share space on their municipal ballot. There is one remaining senate seat open for Alberta. Premier Jason Kenney is less than impressed about the appointment being announced before the election. Trudeau is showing, “contempt for democracy,” Kenney says, and he’s, “snubbing his nose at Alberta’s democratic tradition”:
Even if the person Albertans “elect” at the municipal ballot box is later selected to be a senator, they still have to be appointed. After that? There’s no re-election process for the job. You have it until you’re 75 years old, or die or retire before that.
Masks Off for Summer
Because this is the #BestSummerEver, Kenney declared this week that the pandemic is more or less over … or we’re going to stop paying much attention, anyway. This seemed to be news to Calgary’s Mayor Nenshi:
Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson also says he is surprised and called for people to continue to be vaccinated:
Talking Real (Municipal)
Councillor Ajibola Abitoye from Fort Saskatchewan was on Ryan Jespersen’s Real Talk this week, sharing her experience as a councillor. She ran five years after immigrating to Canada. “I didn’t think it was possible for a Black woman to win,” Abitoye said on the show. She was the first Black woman elected in any level of government since the ‘70s. THE ‘70s.
Drug Treatment Court Comes to Grand Praire
Nature is Healing, The Hot Dogs are BBQing
An Edmonton mayoral candidate reports that more than 700 people came out to a BBQ he hosted. Even in pre-pandemic times, that’s a lot of people and hot dogs.
City Building for Everyone
A conversation seems to be brewing in Calgary about how to design a city that is inclusive of everyone’s needs.
Calgary Still Being Calgary
Rage is based in Edmonton. Someone needs to explain Calgary to us sometime. For example:
And:
Oh, well we get this: