During his 12 years on Flin Flon city council, Cal Huntley earned a reputation as a politician of great persuasion.
It’s a skill the mayor-elect will likely need as he replaces a predecessor who almost always enjoyed unanimous (or near unanimous) support from the five incumbent councillors returning to city hall.
Though he is now mayor, Huntley could find himself ideologically outnumbered on issues ranging from taxation and spending to infrastructure repairs and water meters.
While he ran a very courteous campaign, Huntley made it clear that in his view, Flin Flon needs change. Voters, by an unbelievably slim margin, agreed with him, ending George Fontaine’s mayoralty after a single term.
For Huntley, the challenge will be to sell fresh approaches to councillors who tended to back Fontaine. Will he be successful? Time will tell, but change doesn’t always come easily in life or in politics.
I don’t mean to suggest this new council will be rife with division. But Huntley’s statements and the returning councillors’ records demonstrate there are some important differences of opinion – and that is perfectly healthy.
Perhaps the most unenviable task for Mayor Huntley and his council will be attempting to find the sweet spot that ensures the financial viability of the municipality without alienating the public at large.
Tea leaves
Reading the tea leaves of public opinion in Flin Flon is an exercise fraught with difficulty. This is especially true when substantially fewer than half of eligible voters – 35 per cent in last week’s election – bother to cast ballots.
Some people criticize federal politicians for spending big bucks on polling to gauge public opinion, but you know what? That’s a pretty effective and reliable way to know what your constituents want.
In Flin Flon, our councillors obviously don’t have that kind of luxury. When it comes to reflecting the will of the public, they are left to guess, go with their gut, and rely on feedback from a tiny percentage of the populace.
Still, it is evident that a plurality of voters – as slim as their plurality may be – want a shift away from the Fontaine era, as well meaning as Fontaine is as a citizen and a mayor.
Councillors returning from the Fontaine administration should therefore take pause and reconsider their support of some of the more controversial policies of the past four years.
In the lead-up to the election, Fontaine – whom I very much respect – said something that stuck with me. He commended his councillors for showing “the strength to make decisions” without worrying “what friends or neighbours or anybody else was going to” say.
While I appreciate the spirit of that statement, our leaders should worry about what their fellow citizens will say. After all, we elected them and they work on our behalf.
May fate guide Mayor Huntley and his council through the next four years. And before any of us as residents become too quick to criticize them, let’s acknowledge something right off the hop: all of us as Flin Flonners simply want a brighter future and continued sustainability for our great community.
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