Residents of Stettler will have a chance to meet the mayoral & town council candidates at a forum on Thursday evening. (Oct. 9)
The forum is being hosted by the Stettler Public Library and the Stettler Regional Board of Trade. Doors open at the HUB at the Stettler Recreation Centre at 6:30 p.m., with the event running from 7 to 9 p.m.
This year, voters will have a choice for mayor for the first time in 15 years. Coun. Gord Lawlor & newcomer Dean Lovell are vying for the town’s top job in the Oct. 20 municipal election.
Nine candidates have filed for six town council seats, including four newcomers. With outgoing mayor Sean Nolls not running & Gord Lawlor seeking the mayoralty, the other five incumbents are seeking re-election: Wayne Smith, Cheryl Barros, Scott Pfeiffer, Kurt Baker & Travis Randell.
The new candidates include Keith Friendship, Sharon Fischer, Dusty Myshrall & Jonathan Nichols.
The last contested mayoral race in Stettler was in a 2010 by-election, when then-mayor Dick Richards narrowly defeated Will Brown.
Richards had been acclaimed in 2009 following the resignation of longtime mayor Jim Hunter, who left office to accept an appointment as a provincial court judge.
Hunter, first elected mayor in 2004, now serves as chief justice of the Alberta Court of Justice.
Richards was acclaimed again in 2013 before stepping aside four years later. Sean Nolls, who was first elected as a councillor in 2013, was acclaimed as mayor in both 2017 & 2021.
Advance voting will take place from Oct. 14 to 17, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., at the Town of Stettler office. Election day is Oct. 20, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., at the Stettler Community Hall.
More information on the forums is available at www.stettlerboardoftrade.com
Author: Landin Chambers
Landin Chambers is a news reporter for Hometown Media Stettler. He has a background in broadcast news, with previous roles in Prince George, Red Deer and Calgary. You may also see him as a cameraman for the Stettler Wildcats and Stettler Imperials. Have a story idea? Email: lchambers@htproductionsmedia.ca
