Mayoral candidate criticized for living outside Winnipeg

A mayoral hopeful took heat from other candidates Friday for living outside Winnipeg while running in the civic election.

Mike Vogiatzakis’s primary residence is in the Rural Municipality of St. Andrews, about 25 kilometres north of Winnipeg — a community with its own mayor and councillors.

But the funeral director said he owns a home in Winnipeg where he divides his time, and he would move to the city full-time if elected mayor.

“It doesn’t matter where a person lives. Why are we dividing St. Andrews and Manitoba and Winnipeg? I’ve met the criteria to run for mayor,” Vogiatzakis said Friday morning.

“I own a house in the city. Not only that, I own four commercial buildings in the city. So not only do I have an investment in the city, I have an over-investment in the city.”

Those eligible to run in the civic election must be a resident of Winnipeg or a property owner in the city for at least six months.

“I think we need to stop attacking candidates, and we need to start working with them,” Vogiatzakis said. “I run a multimillion-dollar business in the funeral business, I don’t need to be mayor of the city, trust me. I can live my life every day very comfortably without standing here and putting all the pressure on my shoulders. I’m doing this because I care.”

Others in the running for the city’s top spot said a candidate with a primary residence outside of Winnipeg was a concern.

“I believe those who are running for mayor should already live in the city of Winnipeg. I think most Winnipeggers would agree,” Mayor Scott Gillingham said Friday. “It just would be a basic rule that if you’re going to run for mayor in Winnipeg, you already live in Winnipeg.”

Gillingham also said it was ideal, but not necessary, for councillors to live in the wards they represent.

Most of the other candidates told the Free Press their primary residence is in Winnipeg, including Gillingham, Kevin Klein, Noah Redden, Chris Clacio, Don Woodstock, Umar Hayat, Brad Gross, Johnny Calderon, Joshua Pagdato and Tracey Drexler. Mazher Alam did not respond to the question by press time.

Redden, who lives in the Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry ward, pledged to pursue a change in the registration process to require mayoral candidates have a primary residence in Winnipeg.

“It does concern me that someone who does not live here and does not pay city property tax is trying to take control of our city,” he said. “I do not see how someone who does not live here could understand the concerns of someone who regularly lives in this city or be invested in its future.”

Not every candidate said the postal codes of their opponents should be a deal breaker.

“If he can actually help Winnipeg, I’m not here to stop him,” said Calderon, who also lives in Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry.

Candidates in all levels of government have historically attracted scrutiny for living outside of the areas they seek to represent, but it isn’t typically a campaign-killer, University of Manitoba adjunct political studies Prof. Christopher Adams said.

“I think it is a political liability, but I don’t think it’s sufficient to guarantee defeat,” he said. “St. Andrews is is not within the city, but it’s not very far from the city.”

Election Day is Oct. 28.

— with files from Joyanne Pursaga

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca