Richard Stewart will occupy the mayor's chair in Coquitlam for another four years after winning Saturday's civic election in a landslide, almost tripling the vote count of his closest challenger, longtime politician Lou Sekora.
The 55-year-old Stewart defeated 84-year-old Sekora, taking 15,002 votes (69.56%) to Sekora's 5,705 (26.45%). (The other mayoral challenger, Mark Mahovlich, received 859 votes.)
"It's a great result," Stewart said. "We are very pleased."
Sekora, who was mayor of Coquitlam in the 1980s and 1990s, had been serving as a councillor since 2005, following a brief stint in Ottawa as a Liberal member of Parliament.
While the two politicians often clashed on council and the campaign trail, even jousting through their campaign ads, Stewart acknowledged his opponent's contribution to the city, saying Sekora was always a passionate advocate for the municipality.
"He has done a tremendous amount," Stewart said. "No one can question the kind of passion he brought. He believes completely in Coquitlam."
Stewart added that he hoped Sekora would continue to work with the city, particularly with the organization of the 2016 BC Seniors Games and Coquitlam's 125th birthday in 2016, the same year the Evergreen Line is to begin service.
But when contacted by The Tri-City News on Tuesday, Sekora was adamant that his days in politics are over. He said that after 42 years in public life, he is looking forward to retirement.
"I slept very good the last few nights," he said. "I feel like I have 100 tons off my shoulders."
Sekora believes that there are two reasons he lost the election: his age (he is 84), and the fact that he was endorsed by CUPE along with the five members of the Protect Coquitlam slate, which elected two councillors. Sekora was not part of the slate but he believes voters may have got the impression he was affiliated with it.
"When those cards went out, I had a lot of people who said, 'Oh, you are being endorsed by the same people as [NDP New Westminster-Coquitlam MP Fin] Donnelly and [NDP Coquitlam-Maillardville MLA Selina] Robinson," he said, "'therefore, we are not voting for you.'"
Coun. Neal Nicholson is another council member who won't be returning to the table following Saturday's election. When the votes were tallied, the 72-year-old Protect Coquitlam member found himself in the 10th spot out of eight available positions.
His perspective on council will be missed, said Mayor Stewart.
"I have a great respect for Neal," he added. "He is very thoughtful and really paid attention to the details."
Coun. Craig Hodge topped the polls Saturday night, receiving 13,495 votes - a city record for a council candidate and besting the record previously held by MP Donnelly.
He told The Tri-City News he is pleased with the result and is looking forward to working with his council colleagues in the upcoming term.
"These are all good people that have been elected," said the former News photographer. "They are all here for the right reasons."
Hodge was followed by Coun. Terry O'Neill, a former Tri-City News columnist, with 11,712 votes; Coun. Brent Asmundson came in third with 11,036 while Dennis Marsden took 10,372 and Teri Towner received 10,223 votes.
Protect Coquitlam member Coun. Chris Wilson placed sixth in the council race with 10,134 votes while longtime Coun. Mae Reid was re-elected with 9,659 votes. Coun. Bonita Zarrillo, another member of the slate, took the eighth and final spot on council with 7,960 votes.
Mayor Stewart said that his first task once council business resumes will be to pull together a fractious group following a particularly acrimonious campaign.
As members of Protect Coquitlam/CCA, Zarrillo and Wilson were often criticized by council colleagues for bringing slate politics to city hall. Rallying the group will be a difficult task, Stewart said.
"I have to figure out how to bring some disparate views and perspectives into the same room so we can work together," he said. "I want to have a council that strives to work for consensus."
