Incumbent mayors re-elected in St. Albert, Strathcona County

The mayors of St. Albert and StrathconaCounty were re-elected Monday with all polls reporting out of the municipalities neighbouring Edmonton.

Strathcona County Mayor Rod Frank easilywon a second term overfour opponents, includingformer Sherwood Park MLAsAnnie McKitrick and Dave Quest.

One council incumbent, Brian Botterill, lost his seat in Ward 3 to accountant Harvey Lorne.

Two councillorschose not to run again so two more newcomers were elected: Aaron C. Nelson in Ward 4 and Corey-Ann Hartwick in Ward 6.

Tight race in St. Albert

Cathy Heron barely clincheda second term as mayorof St. Albert over law student Angela Wood, winning by about 600 votes.

Heron received 6,927 votes, while 6,328 voted for Wood.

"It was much tighter than I thought it would be, which tells me a lot," Heron said.

"There is a signal that's coming from the residents of St. Albert. Not exactly sure what that signalisI'mgoing to have to delve into it but we are where we are."

All four St. Albert council incumbentskept their seats. Two councillorsdid not seek re-election and will be replaced bynewcomers Mike Killick and Shelley Biermanski.

The COVID-19 pandemic created "a bit of a divide" in the race, Heron said, with incumbents and new candidates falling on different sides of the debates around masking and vaccinations. Several candidates also focused on greater council transparency and more fiscal restraint.

Heron was pleased with the election of several "progressive" candidates in other central Alberta communities, including mayor-elect Amerjeet Sohi in Edmonton.

"Albertans, for the majority, set a progressive tone to the next four years at municipal levels and those people represent ideas and they represent community and they represent inclusion, and I'm very pleased to see that across Alberta," shesaid.

New mayors in Red Deer, Morinville

Two central Alberta municipalities have elected new mayors.

In Red Deer, mayor-electKen Johnston, a two-term city councillor, handily defeated fellow councillor Buck Buchanan and businessman Jeremy Richard Moore.

Outgoing mayor Tara Veer did not seek re-election after 17 years on council, including two terms as mayor.

In Morinville, mayor-elect Simon Boersma, a political newcomer, wonwith a sizable lead over incumbent Barry Turner.