For District of Lantzville council candidate Jonathan Lerner, the election campaign unofficially started months ago.
The 36-year-old announced his candidacy back in January, and has maintained his enthusiasm to seek the city councillor position ever since.
Lerner said he wants to be on council because he sees it as a way to serve the community and represent his fellow citizens. He was active in politics in recent months volunteering for the Lantzville Community Association that opposed two major development applications, but said even before development was making news in the community, he was considering running for district council.
“I have this peculiar flaw where I actually enjoy politics and I enjoy reading through large documents and city plans and things like that, so it was something that spoke to me…” Lerner said. “The more I learned and the more I spoke to people, the more it came to mind that it would be a good opportunity for me to give back to the community and help represent the community and make a positive difference.”
Lerner works as director of business development for the Regional Animal Protection Society and his other work experience has also been in the non-profit sector, raising money for family and employment services and trying to “uplift communities,” he said.
His finance and management experience can help council, he said, and he also wants to bring transparency and communication and be responsive to citizens.
“[Councillors] are hired by the people, they’re paid by the people, they’re responsible to the people, so it’s important that that be a lens through which everything is viewed,” he said.
Aside from development philosophies, Lerner thinks high taxes will be on the minds of voters and he said it’s important that the district be transparent about how tax dollars are being spent.
Lerner was asked if he thinks citizens are keen to see change around the council table.
“Lantzville tends to have a relatively high [voter] turnout and I think that’s because people really are mindful and cast their vote with consideration,” he said.
For more information, visit http://lernerforlantzville.com.
Anyone running for mayor or councillor in the City of Nanaimo or the District of Lantzville, regional director in the Regional District of Nanaimo’s Area A, B, C or E, or school trustee in School District 68 is asked to contact the Nanaimo News Bulletin to set up an interview or invite us to a campaign launch event. Phone Greg Sakaki at 250-734-4621 or e-mail editor@nanaimobulletin.com.
ELECTION 2022: Candidates in Nanaimo, Lantzville, RDN and SD68
editor@nanaimobulletin.com
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