Warman mayoral candidate Gary Philipchuk doesn’t have to wait until the municipal election to see if he will be voted in to the position because he was elected by acclamation.
After the October 7 deadline for municipal candidate nominations passed, Philipchuk was the only name on the ballot for mayor, so he will assume the position after the election which will take place November 9. His title won’t be official until he is sworn in on November 16.
Philipchuk was a long time city councillor and he wants to take what he has contributed to city council and build on from there.
“I’ve been a strong supporter and advocate of Mayor Sheryl Spence’s plan and had been a part of it along the way,” he said. “I want to continue our population growth, I want to make sure that we have a true plan with our businesses; whether it’s on Central St., Centennial Blvd. or in the south. We really had a vision of what that is going to look like and I want to do everything I can to nurture that.”
Philipchuk has had his name officially in the race since early September and he said it was an anxious feeling being the only mayoral candidate, not knowing if anyone else was going to run for mayor.
“It was exciting and anxious at the same time as far as the 4 p.m. deadline, because you realize somebody can come in at 3:59 and your next month changes dramatically,” he said. “I was always ready for 4 p.m. to come (on Oct. 7) and get my signs and posters printed.”
Philipchuk is still willing to talk to residents if they have questions about the upcoming election.
“I don’t plan on specifically doing door knocking at this time, but I’ll gladly meet with people when requested.”
Philipchuk was expecting for there to be a race for mayor but at the same time he is glad that he didn’t have to run against anyone else.
“People know me through the many years on council and I feel this is almost like a vote of confidence in a lot of ways that nobody wanted to run against me in this election,” he said.
There will still be an election for the councillor positions and Philipchuk is excited to see how that plays out.
“There are 12 people vying for six seats, he said. “So this will be an exciting time for Warman still seeing the many personalities out there and a chance for them to reach out to all the candidates and pick there choices.”