‘Thank you, Winnipeg’: Gillingham wins second term as city’s mayor

Scott Gillingham won a second term as Winnipeg mayor in Wednesday’s municipal election, while Noah Redden surged to a top-three finish and more than half of the city’s 15 councillors seats were claimed by political newcomers.

Unofficial results gave Gillingham 39.82 per cent of the vote, followed by Kevin Klein (20.71 per cent), Noah Redden (19.84 per cent) and Mike Vogiatzakis (9.66 per cent) in a field of 12 candidates — the most since 1992.

“Tonight, you have given me the honour of serving as your mayor once again,” Gillingham, joined by his wife Marla and other family members, said in front of more than 100 cheering supporters who waved blue and orange pompoms at the Birchwood Inn in St. James. 

“I have to tell you, it means even more to me this second time. Thank you, Winnipeg. I will never take your trust for granted. I still believe our city’s best days are ahead of us.”

He improved upon the 27.52 per cent he received when he won the 2022 mayoral race with the smallest vote share for any Winnipeg mayor in recent history.

Gillingham said he’s committed to working with communities, senior levels of government and Indigenous governments to find solutions on issues such as homelessness, addictions, mental health and crime.

“I hear those concerns because I share those concerns,” he said.

He vowed to move forward with a mental-health and addictions crisis response model that would divert non-violent calls to a new service to free up police, fire and paramedic services to respond to other priorities.

He told reporters he would like to restore more bus stops in front of seniors homes within his first 100 days of office, following feedback he received on the campaign trail.

Eight other candidates — Mazher Alam, Johnny Calderon, Chris Clacio, Tracey Drexler, Brad Gross, Umar Hayat, Joshua Pagdato and Don Woodstock — each had less than three per cent.

A record 50,767 voters cast advance ballots, a 21 per cent increase over 2022.

Recent elections had turnouts of 37.5 per cent (2022) — the lowest since 1989 — and 42.33 per cent (2018).

It was a quieter affair at the Norwood Hotel, where Klein and about 50 supporters watched a live TV broadcast as Gillingham was declared the winner. After speaking to Gillingham on the phone, Klein waved to the crowd and joked: “Gloomy, so gloomy.”

He suggested “dirty politics” played a role in his loss.

In his concession speech, Klein thanked his wife, Heather, who’s battled breast cancer through his campaign, and said he was humbled by the support he received.

He later told reporters Gillingham didn’t receive the full confidence of the city.

“That’s not really a screaming majority to take the city forward and to have the full support of the city behind you, but I think that’s something we have to consider as we go forward, too,” said Klein, president and CEO of the company that publishes the Winnipeg Sun.

Klein said he didn’t regret registering to run for mayor less than two months before election day.

Gillingham led public opinion polls during the campaign, although nearly 60 per cent of 685 respondents in Abacus Data’s final pre-election survey said it’s definitely or probably time for a new mayor.

He tried to position himself as the field’s most credible candidate, citing his 12 years of experience on council, his first-term record and his relationships with the federal and provincial governments — on issues such as homeless strategies and infrastructure funding— among the reasons he deserves more time as mayor.

Klein and Vogiatzakis, a funeral director, jockeyed to present themselves as the best alternative to Gillingham. Klein had raised concerns about the potential for vote-splitting with Vogiatzakis.

Redden emerged as the leading left-of-centre candidate when a 10-point bump in the Abacus Data survey put him in joint third place with Vogiatzakis less than a week before the vote.

Redden’s momentum carried through on election day. He told supporters he’s not “heartbroken” by the result.

Entering the mayoral race was about bringing attention to public transit, urban sprawl and compassion for vulnerable people, he said at the Royal Canadian Legion branch in South Osborne.

“We really came together to show that we are tired of the status quo and that we want real change in the city,” he said.

Afterward, he told reporters this election won’t be his last.

Vogiatzakis expressed shock at the results. His campaign heavily focused on public safety, and he often cited the killing of his brother, Kyriakos, in January 2024. 

“I wanted to stand up for my brother. I think I would have did a good job, and I think I would have cleaned up the city,” he said at a gathering at the Pony Corral Restaurant & Bar on Pembina Highway. “The people of Winnipeg have spoken. Scott Gillingham is the mayor again, and I respect that, and I will support him.”

Gillingham was backed by 36 per cent of decided voters in Abacus Data’s final poll, conducted from Oct. 16-22. Klein was second with 19 per cent, and Redden and Vogiatzakis were tied for third with 14 per cent each.

Gillingham campaigned on promises to revitalize a stretch of north Main Street, set up a new economic growth office, hire more firefighters and police officers and find ways to build mid-rise housing at shopping mall sites and on major transportation corridors.

He said he would stick to council’s previous decisions to raise property taxes by 3.5 per cent and freeze water and sewer rates in 2027. The business tax would also be frozen.

Gillingham, who pledged to keep future tax hikes close to inflation, said council could consider a potential one-time frontage fee hike of $1 per foot in 2028 to raise $18 million for infrastructure projects.

Other promises included an extra $20 million for recreation facility upgrades and improved cleanliness in downtown Winnipeg.

University of Winnipeg political science professor Aaron Moore said Gillingham has more work ahead of him to win over the electorate.

“There’s obviously more he could do to reach out to more of the public and, hopefully, make people feel like the city is doing more for them,” Moore said.

“I do think he is wearing a lot of the issues that people see with the city, and I don’t think that is fair to place all of that on the mayor. There’s other levels of government that have more to do with that.”

Gillingham may want to stay on the province’s good side, but he needs to be more public in requesting additional support from the province on issues such as homelessness, crime or transit funding, in the same way the Manitoba government requests more of Ottawa, Moore said.

While he wasn’t surprised by Gillingham’s win, Moore thought Klein would have a stronger showing.

“I think he’s going to be disappointed with his support. I think he kind of hit a wall quite some time ago and just couldn’t reach a larger electorate,” he said, adding he didn’t expect Redden — the youngest mayoral hopeful, at 27 — to finish in the top three.

“I think what we’re seeing is Noah Redden probably had quite a bit of momentum going into the election,” Moore said.

He took Redden’s strong showing as a positive sign that younger Winnipeggers were engaged in the election and turned out to vote.

Moore said Gillingham, centre-right on the political spectrum, appealed to more voters in the centre or centre-left than Klein or Vogiatzakis, who are both right of centre.

“As much as people are down on the direction of the city, when it comes to voting, people often just vote for the incumbent — the person they’re familiar with, particularly when you aren’t somebody who follows very, very closely,” he said.

Gillingham, a former Pentecostal pastor, was the councillor for St. James for eight years before he became Winnipeg’s 44th mayor in 2022. He defeated 10 other candidates that year, including former mayor Glen Murray, who finished second, and Klein, who was third in the closest race since 1977.

The last time an incumbent Winnipeg mayor lost an election was 1956, when Stephen Juba unseated George Sharpe. 

While Gillingham held his seat, Winnipeggers voted for change elsewhere on council. Nine of 15 wards will have new councillors.

Natalie Smith edged incumbent Ross Eadie in Mynarski, Greg McFarlane toppled incumbent Devi Sharma in Old Kildonan, Kelly Ryback defeated incumbent Shawn Dobson in St. James and Lora Meseman ousted incumbent Russ Wyatt in Transcona.

Incumbents didn’t seek re-election in five wards. The new councillors are Jasmine Brar (Waverley West), Ray DuBois (St. Norbert-Seine River), Sara MacArthur (River Heights-Fort Garry), Jeff Palmer (Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry) and Chris Sigurdson (St. Vital).

Six incumbents were re-elected: Matt Allard (St. Boniface), Jeff Browaty (North Kildonan), Evan Duncan (Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood), Emma Durand-Wood (Elmwood-East Kildonan), Cindy Gilroy (Daniel McIntyre) and Vivian Santos (Point Douglas).

fpcity@winnipegfreepress.com