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Lantzville citizens re-elect Swain and vote in a like-minded council

Successful candidates campaigned on community engagement and accountability
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Lantzville Mayor Mark Swain was re-elected in a landslide and will lead a council with three new members. (News Bulletin file photo)

Voters in the District of Lantzville elected a mayor and council who campaigned on similar platforms.

In Saturday’s local government election, Mayor Mark Swain was re-elected in a landslide with 1,345 votes, more than 1,000 votes ahead of runner-up Stan Pottie who received 184 votes.

In the councillor election, Jonathan Lerner topped the polls with 1,104 votes, incumbent Ian Savage received 1,066 votes, Joan Jones picked up 1,064 votes and Rachelle Mundell rounded out the new council with 880 votes. Among candidates who weren’t elected, John Dunn received the most votes with 604.

Swain said he thought the campaign went very well and was kept “very professional and positive.”

The successful candidates in Lantzville campaigned on some similar platform items, most notably community engagement and accountability, especially as it pertained to development in the district. Swain said citizens were “almost definitely” sending a message with the way they voted.

“Whether it’s in response to petitions being submitted to the district, letters being written to the district … what I heard from residents, or from the electorate, is that they were not being heard,” Swain said. “And they’re tired of that and growing increasingly frustrated. And I believe that the election results definitely show what residents want. And that’s simply to be heard.”

He foresees a greater “degree of collaboration” on Lantzville’s next council, and doesn’t anticipate the kind of voting splits that came on many contentious votes with the current council or the council before that.

“I think the biggest thing for this term is the community has got to do a little bit of healing and start working together and coming together,” Swain said.

Pottie, who keeps dinosaur sculptures on his property, posted on social media on Sunday morning that he plans to “sell the dinos” and move away.

READ ALSO: Krog re-elected as Nanaimo mayor, Manly top vote-getter among council candidates

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editor@nanaimobulletin.com

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