Scott Gillingham

Scott Gillingham was elected Winnipeg’s new mayor on Wednesday, October 26, after a close race with former Winnipeg mayor Glen Murray. The two leading contenders in a field of 11 candidates were neck and neck up until the last ballots were counted.

Gillingham, who was the councillor for St. James, won with 27.5 per cent of the votes over Glen Murray’s 25.3 per cent ­– a margin of 4,391 votes.

Gillingham’s victory is notable for reaping the lowest percentage of the popular vote in a modern Winnipeg election. Previously, Susan Thompson won with 38.3 per cent in 1995.

This was also the closest mayoral race since 1977, when Robert Steen defeated Bill Norrie by 1,819 votes, or 1.24 percentage points.

Dante Aviso School Trustee, Ward 5	Ann Evangelista School Trustee, Ward 9	Perla Javate School Trustee, Ward 6

Filipino Canadian candidates

Three Filipino Canadian candidates won seats on Winnipeg’s school board.

Dante Aviso narrowly won the school trustee seat in Ward 5 over a crowded field of nine candidates, including the incumbent, Kevin Freedman.

Perla Javate took Ward 6 with 51.5 per cent of the vote in a field of three candidates. Javate is no stranger to the educational system. Among her numerous accomplishments, she served for many years as Community Liaison Officer and Intercultural Support Worker for the Winnipeg School Division.

Ann Evangelista earned 58.78 per cent of the vote in a field of five candidates to win Ward 9. Evangelista is a TESL instructor at the University of Winnipeg and serves on the board of the Manitoba Association of Filipino Teachers.

Another Filipino Canadian, Chris Clacio, was among the first candidates to enter the 2022 race to become Winnipeg’s mayor. He garnered 451 votes or 0.23 per cent of the total votes cast. He previously ran for school trustee in the Seven Oaks School Division (Ward 2) in 2014.