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mayor
Mayoral candidate says his crimes are in his past
PENTICTON - Mayoral candidate Jukka Laurio says his time spent in jail for sexual offence is in the past and people should focus on what he’s doing now to improve the community. Laurio, who announced he was running for mayor of Penticton last week, has a serious criminal record including drug trafficking and possession conviction...
Political cyber sabotage in Kelowna mayoral election campaign
KELOWNA – The RCMP are investigating after someone hacked former Kelowna mayor Sharon Shepherd’s old Twitter account. It appears someone used the Twitter account to attack the mayoral candidate’s reputation in an effort to discredit her. “Those who know me soon realized my previous accounts had been take over without my knowledge or permission, for...
ELECTIONS 2014: Your Vernon candidates
VERNON - Nominations for the upcoming municipal election officially closed at 4 p.m. Friday, leaving the following candidates vying for seats. Five are running for mayor of Vernon: Victor Cumming, Jamie Morrow, Akbal Mund, Mary-Jo O’Keefe, and Klaus Tribes. The 14 who tossed their hat in for one of the City of Vernon’s six councillor...
ELECTION 2014: Your Penticton candidates
PENTICTON - Friday was the last day for council candidates to submit their nomination papers and officially lock themselves into the race. There are a few unexpected names on the list — some old faces and some new ones, but mostly the latter. There are three mayoral candidates — Andrew Jakubeit and John Vassilaki, both...
Jukka Laurio takes second attempt at mayoral seat
PENTICTON - The mayoral race just got a little tougher with local business owner Jukka Laurio filing to become the third candidate. Laurio is no stranger to city politics, having run for mayor in 2011, but he says he’s more focused this time around. “I’m going to give Penticton a job,” he says. He explained...
Litke still has a few tricks up his sleeve
PENTICTON - With two months left in office, Mayor Garry Litke hopes to accomplish a few more things before he walks out the doors of City Hall for good. Before he became mayor, Litke was a city councillor for eight years. Being a part of the team that created the South Okanagan Events Centre was...
Litke is hanging up his mayoral hat
PENTICTON - Mayor Garry Litke is calling it a day and will not run in the upcoming city election. Litke has been mayor for only 13 months, after he was chosen to replace former mayor Dan Ashton in a by-election in fall 2013. Before that, he spent eight years as a city councillor, and 33...
Sentes decides not to run for mayor; seeks another term as councillor
PENTICTON - She was tempted to run for Pentction mayor but after taking some time to reflect, Coun. Judy Sentes has decided to seek re-election instead. With three council seats definitely empty going in to the race, Sentes says it’s important for there to be a mix of experienced and new councillors around the table....
Batman villains and zombie candidates: The Penticton election is getting kooky
PENTICTON - Growing frustrations with Penticton’s political landscape has inspired now two political lampoons, inspired by gold rush heroes and Batman villains. A poster of mayoral candidates depicted as villains from Batman showed up around town Tuesday, and ultimately made its way to Facebook. The poster shows Mayor Garry Litke as the Joker, Coun. Andrew...
Sentes contemplating running for mayor
PENTICTON - The mayoral race could get a little heated by the end of the week, depending on whether one councillor decides to follow her peers and run for mayor. Coun. Judy Sentes says her name will be on the ballot, but she's not sure yet if she'll run for council or the mayor's seat....
Litke says election rumours are ‘terrible’
PENTICTON - Mayor Garry Litke is keeping his lips sealed about whether he will run for reelection despite the circulating rumours he does not want to be mayor any longer. Litke will still announce his decision on October 7 — three days before nominations close — whether he will seek more time at the head...
West Kelowna mayor seeking third term
WEST KELOWNA – Doug Findlater has announced he will seek his third term as mayor of West Kelowna in the upcoming election. First elected six years ago, Findlater has been on the West Kelowna District Council since incorporation. According to a press release sent Monday morning, “Doug is seeking re-election because he believes that the...
Homophobic, sexist Facebook comments sink Penticton mayoral campaign
PENTICTON – Just hours after announcing he was going to run for mayor in Penticton, Edson Chan withdrew from the race. The 26-year-old posted the news to the Facebook group Educate Encourage Empower #Penticton after members of the forum called him out for homophobic and sexist slurs on his personal Facebook page. In his post...
Edson Chan represents young population in mayoral race
PENTICTON - A fresh face is joining the race for mayor of Penticton and he hopes his presence will draw the attention of youths into the world of politics. Edson Chan, 26, was born and raised in Penticton. He says he has paid attention to many of the changes Penticton has gone through and wants...
Another candidate in the running for Vernon mayor
VERNON - A prominent local businessperson has announced his intention to run for mayor in the upcoming municipal election. Akbal Mund, known for his involvement in numerous local events and fundraisers, says he’s ready to take on a role at city hall. “One hundred per cent of my focus will be looking after the City...