Change is in the air, as half of Sault Ste. Marie city council will consist of fresh faces following Monday night’s municipal election.
“It’s incredibly humbling,” said newly-elected Ward 2 councillor Luke Dufour, who was watching the live elections results with a group of family, friends and supporters at Outspoken Brewing during election night. “People’s votes are important things, and for them to put that kind of trust in me, it really means a lot and it’s not something that I take lightly.”
There will be five new faces to city council following Monday night’s election.
Ward 2 will have two new councillors in Dufour and Lisa Vezeau-Allen, ousting longtime councillor Lou Turco.
Ward 5 will also have two new councillors in Matthew Scott and Corey Gardi.
The fifth new member of city council is Donna Hilsinger, who joins returning Matthew Shoemaker in Ward 3.
Dufour says that he’s grateful to all the people who supported him during all three runs for office, having run for Ward 4 in 2014 and Ward 2 in 2016.
“I remember in 2014 I was 300 votes behind [Lou] Turco, and it kind of spurred me to get more involved in the community, more involved in politics,” he told SooToday. “It’s just really satisfying to have such a good showing tonight.”
Five candidates for city council will not be returning, including Turco and Ward 5 incumbent Frank Fata, who was running for his fourth consecutive term on council.
Fata says that he had “good vibes” going into the election, given all the positive feedback and words of support directed his way leading up to Monday night.
“I’m certainly going to wish the two successful candidates well,” Fata said moments after polls closed for Ward 5. “I know they’re young and they’re energized, so I’m sure that they will do a good job.”
“But yeah, I certainly was disappointed, to say the least.”
Fata, who had pushed for a limit of three terms for city councillors, hints that maybe his opinions on terms served as some sort of foreshadowing.
“I still believe in that truthfully, that three terms is certainly more than enough for someone to serve in municipal politics,” he said. “Maybe it was just an omen.”
Meanwhile, a low-key celebration for Dufour in downtown Sault Ste. Marie ushers in a new era for city council.
“I said it a few times during the campaign, the younger generation are starting the businesses, starting the families, and the ones who have the most to invest in the future of Sault Ste. Marie, and it’s really time that they have a seat at the table to represent that change,” Dufour said.
Click here for results from Monday's municipal election.