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election
ELECTION 2015: Getting to know Jacqui Gingras, North Okanagan-Shuswap NDP candidate
VERNON - For North Okanagan-Shuswap NDP candidate Jacqui Gingras, running in the 2015 federal election has been four years in the making. The longtime Okanagan resident committed herself to the task shortly after NDP leader Jack Layton died in 2011. Inspired by his call for all Canadians to consider serving their communities, Gingras stepped up....
ELECTION 2015: Why North Okanagan-Shuswap candidate Cindy Derkaz wants to earn your vote
VERNON - You might know her from her days working at Derkaz Shoes, her parent’s shop, or from her involvement in organizations like the Shuswap Community Foundation or Shuswap Trail Alliance. And now, Cindy Derkaz is introducing herself in a new capacity, as the Liberal party candidate for the North-Okanagan Shuswap riding. Derkaz grew up...
ELECTION 2015: MP’s brag about accomplishments as early election expectations mount
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – With a federal election less than three months away, local MP’s are ramping up their push to promote their accomplishments over the past year. It’s not unusual for politicians to send releases to the media to show the work they do and the money they’ve secured for their areas, but a breakdown of...
Kelowna Mountain developer made a massive contribution to Taxpayers First
KELOWNA — Taxpayers First—the City of Kelowna’s first slate of candidates—spent more than $50,000 trying to get elected in the November municipal election, nearly all of it coming from the five candidates themselves except for the nearly $19,000 from the man behind Kelowna Mountain. Mark Consiglio contributed $18,960 in two separate donations, according to campaign...
Vernon voters welcome cultural diversity to city hall
"THIS IS AN ACCOMPLISHMENT AND A FEAT" VERNON - Vernon’s rich cultural diversity is being reflected and celebrated on the community’s new city council. In the 2014 civic election, voters elected Akbal Mund for mayor and Dalvir Nahal for city councillor, making them the first individuals of South Asian heritage to sit on Vernon city council....
Outgoing council has tearful goodbye at last council meeting
PENTICTON - There were tears around the council table during the meeting Monday night as goodbye speeches were made by three outgoing members, all of whom have served Penticton for nearly a decade. Coun. John Vassilaki, who has been a councillor for twelve consecutive years, went first, listing council’s accomplishments over the years and giving...
Penticton council would be completely different if students voted
PENTICTON - Penticton students took part in a province-wide program to choose who they thought should be on city council and the results are very different than the results of last week's civic election in Penticton. The vote was part of Student Vote Day 2014, a program offering students a chance to learn about the...
What would happen if the Vernon vote was left up to high school students
VERNON - Vernon’s newly elected council would look a bit different if left up to a group of high school students. According to Student Vote—a province-wide program giving youth under the voting age a chance to learn about democracy and voting—Vernon Secondary School students had some different ideas about who should sit on council. The...
ELECTION 2014: Vote recount not necessary, according to city
PENTICTON - Members of the community are asking for a recount after voter turnout was lower than anticipated, however the city is not planning a recount request. Only 8,424 of the 26,806 eligible voters submitted their ballots for the 2014 election— almost two per cent fewer voters than in 2011. The community had high expectations...
ELECTION 2014: Who won in the South Okanagan
SOUTH OKANAGAN - You voted and the results are in for the mayors and councils of the South Okanagan who will start their four-year terms in December. Summerland welcomes new mayor Peter Waterman, who won with 1,197 votes. Joining him on council is Toni Boot with 2,819 votes; Erin Trainer with 2,214 votes; Erin Carlson...
Miscalculation on election night means a different Armstrong councillor is celebrating
ARMSTRONG - A tallying mistake on election night means an Armstrong woman who thought she’d won a seat on council is getting some bad news. On Saturday night, the City of Armstrong reported Helen Jackson earned 425 votes in the civic election, enough to beat Lance McGregor, with 403 votes, for the sixth councillor seat....
ELECTION 2014: North Okanagan voters elect new councils, school trustees and regional district reps
WHO WON IN VERNON, ARMSTRONG, SPALLUMCHEEN, COLDSTREAM, ENDERBY AND SALMON ARM NORTH OKANAGAN - Voters have chosen new councils, school trustees and regional district representatives. In Vernon, voters kept four councillors, welcomed in two new ones, and chose a new face to represent them as mayor. Political newcomer Akbal Mund is Vernon's new mayor. There's been...
ELECTION 2014: Jakubeit new mayor of Penticton
PENTICTON - The votes are in and Andrew Jakubeit is the new mayor of Penticton, beating out former councillor and colleague John Vassilaki and local businessman Jukka Laurio. Jakubeit won by more than 2,000 votes with a total of 5,126 votes. “I just want to say thank you,” he said after the win. “The whole...
Faux campaign signs spark a laugh during tense election time
PENTICTON - There's a local man known by friends for his random acts of kindness, whether it’s sticking a ten dollar bill in a library book, or making fake election signs to get a laugh from his friends. Rylan Hernberg’s signs are mixed in with the other hundreds of election candidate signs around town, but...
Votes cast at advance polls break records
PENTICTON - Attendance numbers from the advance polls earlier this week have broken records for number of ballots cast. On the first day of advance polls, 746 ballots were cast, and 1,147 ballots were cast on the second day, for a two-day total of 1,893—1,103 more votes cast than in 2011. The Local Government now...
Remember to vote, local marketing agency uses social media campaign to spread the word
PENTICTON - A local marketing company is lending its services and expertise to the Rock the Vote campaign encouraging Penticton residents to get out and vote next weekend during the general election. Dave MacCoubrey, owner of SIRF Marketing and Spotted in Penticton has been collecting video footage, photos and comments from election candidates over the...
Social media campaigns fire up to improve voter turnout in the North Okanagan
HOW SOCIAL MEDIA IS BEING USED TO GET RESIDENTS OUT ON VOTING DAY VERNON - Local groups and municipalities are hoping social media campaigns can help boost voter turnout this civic election. The City of Vernon is encouraging voters to use the #ivotedvernon hashtag and to post selfies on Facebook and Twitter of themselves wearing...
West Kelowna candidates forum tonight
WEST KELOWNA – On the day advanced voting opens across the valley, candidates for mayor, councillor and school trustee will be at Constable Neil Bruce Middle School in West Kelowna Wednesday night for the first all candidates forum. The three part forum, organized by the Westside Board of Trade, starts with candidates for council at 6:30...
Penticton is invited to Rock the Vote
PENTICTON - One election candidate is taking the issue of voter turnout into his own hands by organizing a Rock the Vote event to spread the word about the importance of voting. Mayoral candidate Andrew Jakubeit arranged an event for Thursday Nov. 6 at the Barking Parrot Bar and Grill that includes live music and...
Former Coun. Hopkin endorses Jakubeit for mayor
PENTICTON - Former Coun. Wes Hopkin has officially endorsed his colleague and mayoral candidate Coun. Andrew Jakubeit for the hot seat. In a letter, Hopkin said his experience working alongside Jakubeit as councillor for three years showed him that Jakubeit has the leadership skills to successfully run the city as mayor. Hopkin said he has...
If you missed the candidate forums last week, we got ya covered
PENTICTON - Council and mayoral candidates gathered at the Lakeside Resort last week in front of two rather large crowds to talk politics, strategy and their plans for Penticton’s future. The council candidate forum was held first, on Tuesday, Oct. 28 and 22 of the 25 candidates represented themselves in the question-answer style presentation. The...
Learn more about Vernon school board candidates at upcoming forum
VERNON - A chance to learn more about your Vernon school board candidates is approaching. The Vernon Teachers’ Association, in partnership with the District Parent Advisory Council, will hold a public forum for Vernon and Coldstream school trustee candidates on Tuesday, Nov. 4 from 7-8:30 p.m. in the Vernon Secondary School Theatre. “Teachers and parents...
Vandalized cafe may be linked to municipal election
OLIVER - An Oliver cafe owner says he won’t take election signs down, even after his business was vandalized in what appears to be anti-election behaviour. John Micka, owner of Sunshine Cafe in Oliver has to replace his cafe-front window after it was shot at by a pellet gun. The shot left several small holes...
Vote Elephant Storage signs mock actions at Vernon City Hall
VERNON - When he heard his city councillors were openly breaking one of their own bylaws, Vernon resident Wade Cantalope decided to have some fun. You may have noticed a slightly unusual political sign along the roadways: Vote Elephant Storage Centre. Cantalope, who owns the storage company, isn’t actually running in the election. His campaign...