ESTEVAN - Estevan residents will have some decisions to make when they cast their ballots in the Nov. 13 civic election.
Two more people - David Elliott and Rhyan Hagel - filed their nomination papers for city councillor on Wednesday prior to the 4 p.m. deadline, bringing the total to 10.
Both have run for office before. Elliott ran for councillor on multiple occasions, the most recent being in the October 2006 election, but was defeated. Hagel was one of three candidates who ran for mayor in the 2016 race that was won by Roy Ludwig. .
The other candidates for councillor include two incumbents, Coun. Shelly Veroba and Coun. Kirsten Walliser, as well as a former councillor in Brian Johnson. There are five first-time candidates: Kevin Andrews, Stephen Daniel, Mathew Dubowski, Tom Mauss and Robin Wog. Six councillors will be elected.
Three people are vying to be the next mayor. Councillors Rebecca Foord and Tony Sernick, who are wrapping up their first respective terms on council, filed their papers, as has first-time candidate Zacch Vandenhurk.
Ludwig, who has been Estevan's mayor since 2012 and a council member since 1994, announced late last year he was not seeking re-election.
Other races were decided by acclamation.
Karen Melle and Virgilito (Gil) Sotto will be the Estevan trustees on the Holy Family Roman Catholic Separate School Division's board. Both submitted their documents on Tuesday. Melle is a long-time trustee whose experience with Catholic education dates back to the 1990s with the Estevan Roman Catholic Separate School Board, before it amalgamated into Holy Family. Sotto is wrapping up his first term as the Estevan rural trustee on Holy Family. There are two trustees for the city of Estevan and one rural Estevan trustee on the board.
With the South East Cornerstone Public School Division's board, incumbent trustee Kevin Keating and newcomer Craig MacDonald were acclaimed as the two Estevan representatives. Keating has several terms of experience as a Cornerstone trustee, but he is wrapping up his first term as an Estevan city representative.
As for the RM of Estevan, Jason LeBlanc, who has been the reeve since August 2021, was acclaimed to a first full term in the role. Also acclaimed were two incumbent councillors, Kevin Daoust (Division 3) and Ramona Dukart (Division 5), and first-time councillor candidate Suzanne McNabb (Division 1).
Candidates will now have until 4 p.m. on Oct. 10 to withdraw from the race.
The civic election will happen on Nov. 13.
SaskToday.ca and the Mercury will continue to have updates.
