Manitoba

10 things to know before Winnipeg votes

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From the Portage and Main plebiscite to the scheduling conflict with the Toronto Maple Leafs

On Wednesday, Winnipeg voters will decide who makes decisions that will affect their lives over the next four years. (CBC)

Municipal voters can be like students preparing for an exam.

They don't pay attention to the subject early on. They wind up cramming at the last minute. And when they finally get around to perusing the multiple-choice questions, they do little but complain about the options.

The lack of engagement is a shame, given that what happens at city hall is bound to affect your life in a far more profound manner than anything that transpires at the provincial legislature or on Parliament Hill.

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But given the reality some Winnipeggers have not been paying attention, here's a little primer on your options on Wednesday, when you may select your choice of mayor, city councillor and school trustee — and mark a "yes" or "no" in the Portage and Main plebiscite.

1. Winnipeg will elect no fewer than 5 new councillors

In recent years, change has become the norm at city council. The last time Winnipeggers voted, in 2014, fully half of the incoming members of council — the occupants of eight out of 16 seats — were rookies, including Mayor Brian Bowman.

On Wednesday, no fewer than five new members of council will be elected, thanks to vacancies in four wards and the creation of a new ward in southeastern Winnipeg.

Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry is wide open for the first time since 1998, thanks to Jenny Gerbasi's impending retirement. Point Douglas and Transcona are also incumbent-free, for the first time since 2002, thanks to political departures of Mike Pagtakhan and Russ Wyatt, respectively.

Charleswood-Tuxedo is also open after one-term councillor Marty Morantz entered federal politics as a Conservative candidate.

There's also no incumbent in the new St. Norbert-Seine River ward, which was cobbled together from the southern reaches of what used to be the South Winnipeg and St. Vital wards.

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This means new faces will occupy nearly a third of the council seats, even if every ward elects an incumbent on Wednesday.

2. At least one council incumbent is going down

Thanks to ward-boundary realignment, the old city ward of St. Charles has been wiped off Winnipeg's electoral map and absorbed into two other wards.

Most of what used to be St. Charles is now part of an expanded St. James ward. That's where former St. Charles Coun. Shawn Dobson is competing against former St. James-Brooklands-Weston Coun. Scott Gillingham in a cage match between two incumbents.

Both Gillingham and Dobson were first elected in 2014. It was Gillingham's first shot at city council; Dobson was elected on his fourth try in 16 years.

3. Waverley West voters don't have a council choice

Ward-boundary realignment didn't just make St. Charles disappear. It also carved out a brand-new ward called Waverley West, where nobody signed up to run against former South Winnipeg-St. Norbert Coun. Janice Lukes.

ADVERTISEMENT Janice Lukes acclaimed in new Waverley West ward

On Sept. 18, Lukes was acclaimed as the councillor-elect for the new ward. However, voters in that jurisdiction can still cast a ballot, albeit only for mayor, school trustee and on the Portage and Main plebiscite.

4. The Portage and Main vote isn't binding

On Wednesday, Winnipeggers also get to decide whether or not Portage and Main ought to be reopened for pedestrians. Or at least they get to vote on the idea, because the decision is a plebiscite, not a binding referendum.

Both of the most popular mayoral candidates — Brian Bowman and Jenny Motkaluk — have promised to respect the result of the vote. But there's nothing compelling the next council to do so, beyond incurring the wrath of the public that would feel used and abused.

5. A "no" vote may not keep the barricades

But don't get too excited. No matter how the Portage and Main plebiscite turns out, the city is going ahead with $2 million worth of repairs and other improvements to the intersection, both above and below the ground.

Those improvements may result in the removal of concrete barricades at one or more of the corners. But that won't facilitate pedestrian crossings.

The barricades at the northeast corner of Portage and Main — where the Richardson Building sits — would be replaced with railings, Winnipeg planning, property and development director John Kiernan said earlier this year.

6. You have 8 choices for mayor

Brian Bowman has done the job for four years. Jenny Motkaluk is a business consultant. Tim Diack is a police officer. Don Woodstock used to drive for Winnipeg Transit.

Umar Hayat is an entrepreneur. Doug Wilson served one term as Morden's mayor. Ed Ackerman is a filmmaker. Venkat Machiraju is a Hindu priest.

Chances are, the mayoral race has been the only aspect of the election that has engaged you. If not, peruse their promises here.

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If that seems like a lot of options, it could have been worse. In 1992, 17 candidates ran for mayor in a race won by Susan Thompson.

7. Jeff Browaty could become city council's elder

When city council was prorogued for the election, North Kildonan Coun. Jeff Browaty was its second-youngest sitting member, at the age of 40.

Browaty nonetheless stands to become the senior member of city council, should he be elected for a fourth term next week. Browaty was first elected in 2006 at the age of 28 and now has 12 years of council experience, which outranks any other council incumbent thanks to the departures of Gerbasi, Wyatt and Pagtakhan.

8. Nearly 40,000 have already voted

When advance polls closed on Friday, a record 39,840 Winnipeggers exercised their democratic right prior to election day. That breaks the previous advance-voting record of 30,619, set in 2014.

This does not necessarily mean voter engagement is high. It may only mean more voters are eager to vote, as voter turnout in 2014 was a measly 50.23 per cent.

9. Polls are open Wednesday for 12 hours

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You may vote from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. In order to be eligible to vote for mayor or councillor, you must be a Canadian citizen, at least 18 years old and have lived in Winnipeg — or have owned property in the city — for no less than six months.

You must also bring a driver's licence to the polling station or two pieces of identification that demonstrate you are who you say you are and live where you live.

10. The Jets play the Leafs on Wednesday

So vote prior to game time if you care more about Patrik Laine vs. Auston Matthews than you do Brian Bowman vs. Jenny Motkaluk.

Puck drop is at 6 p.m. That means the mayoral result will likely be known before the NHL game ends.

Watch for the results here on cbc.ca/manitoba or listen live on CBC Radio One at 89.3 FM or 990 AM.