Photo by: Brenden Cowan
On Oct. 24, the municipal and school board elections took place for the City of St. Catharines.
Mat Siscoe, a former teacher based in the Niagara Region, volunteer and youth sports coach who also served as one of the city’s councilors for 12 years, won the mayor election by a huge margin, as he received 68.67 per cent of the votes, which amounts to 17,808 people.
In his campaign for mayor, Siscoe claimed he has a plan to make the Garden City more affordable, accessible and accountable, calling it the AAA approach.
Siscoe would like to make life in the city more affordable by increasing the supply of housing for families, supporting those who helped build the community and helping them stay in their homes, eliminating double-dipping to pay for city services, spending smarter with Niagara regional partners and accepting expert advice and implementing recommendations.
The mayor-elect would like to make the city’s communities more accessible by making the region more easily accessible to St. Catharines residents, making the city accessible for business, streamlining city service access and modernizing the building department.
Siscoe aims to make all levels of government more accountable by improving lines of communication, identifying priorities and taking action towards them, preparing for opportunities to grow, as well as tracking snow removal in real time and reviewing the city’s services.
The run for mayor also included Mike Britton, who came in second place, receiving 25.18 per cent of the votes, which was 6,521 people, and Nick Petrucci, coming in third place receiving 6.07 per cent of the votes. Petrucci had 1571 votes in his name.
“I want to say thank you,” said Siscoe, in an Instagram campaign page’s post after his win. “Thank you to those who casted their vote for a more affordable, accessible, and accountable city.”
Walter Sendzik, the outgoing mayor of St. Catharines, who chose not to run for a third term, is in full support of Siscoe’s victory.
“A great night for St. Catharines, well deserved, and well-earned mayor Siscoe,” he said, in a reply to Siscoe’s victory tweet. “Way to go Mat! So proud of you and your team.”
Sendnik, who has been in office since Dec. 2014, will leave this November after serving two terms. Siscoe will be officially sworn in as the Mayor of St. Catharines on Nov. 21.
The full results of the City of St. Catharines Municipal Election 2022 can be found here.