Prince Albert has a new mayor and four new councillors, but newly re-elected Ward 7 representative Dawn Kilmer expects things to keep running smoothly.
Kilmer was the only incumbent running for re-election against a challenger after no candidates stepped forward to run against Tony Head, Blake Edwards, and Darren Solomon. After winning re-election on Wednesday, Kilmer said she expects few changes.
“I’m sure the group will listen and make decisions together, just like the last council I was part of,” Kilmer said. “(I expect) good, well thought out discussion, administration providing data, and (council) moving forward.”
Kilmer defeated former councillor Dennis Nowoselsky, who was seeking a return to municipal politics after representing the area from 2016 to 2020. Kilmer ended the night with 492 votes, compared to 378 for Nowoselsky.
Kilmer said she strove to be councillor who always listened to communicated with residents. She said that was key to her campaign, but added many voters didn’t want a change of direction.
“I think they liked the direction the City is going,” she said. “The economy is beginning to boom. They appreciate the work and they know that when I make a decision, it’s based on evidence.”
Ward 1
The third time was the charm for Daniel Brown, who was elected in Ward 1 after two unsuccessful campaigns against longtime councillor Charlene Miller, who declined to run in 2024.
Brown defeated Larry Vandale 344-265 to secure the win. Brown said it’s a relief to be elected.
“This will be the third time. It’s nice to actually win,” he said with a chuckle. “I’m excited and looking forward to everybody’s different point of views and doing what’s best for all the residents of PA.”
Brown said the Ward 1 campaign was very respectful. The two candidates met for coffee early on in the race, he said, and agreed to keep things clean.
“(We) said we’ll keep it respectable and we’ll try and help each other out,” Brown explained. “We had that mutual town hall meeting there, and then we just shared ideas, so it wasn’t really a campaign race. It was just whoever the voters felt could do the best job for them.”
Ward 5
Stephen Ring said he was humbled to be elected after winning the Ward 5 race over Shaun Harris on Wednesday.
Afterwards, Ring said he didn’t expect to be as nervous as he was watching the results come in. He’s grateful for the chance to serve on council.
“It was exciting, and like I said, very humbling,” Ring said. “I’m honoured that they (voters) thought enough of what I had to offer to put me onto council and I hope I do them proud.”
Ring said there weren’t any huge issues in his ward that energized voters. On doorsteps, he stressed that Prince Albert was heading in the right direction, and told residents he would keep it that way.
“Whether some people think we are or not, I think we are, and we’ve got to keep that moving,” Ring said. “We’ve got to keep a real cohesive group in there to keep it going in the right direction and ask the right questions, and we’ve got to keep fiscal management top of mind and do the right things.”
Ring defeated Harris 735-539. The race saw the highest vote total out of any Prince Albert ward.
Ring is one of four new councillors, and five new faces counting Mayor-Elect Bill Powalinsky. Ring said he’s looking to the four incumbents to provide leadership as Prince Albert moves forward.
“It’s a little bit overwhelming because there’s a lot of stuff,” he said. “It’s a little bit of a steep learning curve, but I think with Dawn Kilmer, Darren Solomon, Tony Head, and Blake Edwards, I’m going to look on them to lean on a little bit when something comes up for discussion.”
For more coverage of Wednesday’s election, please see Saturday’s edition of the Daily Herald.
