Mayor Richard Atwell said he is not surprised Coun. Fred Haynes has chosen to run against him.

B次元官网网址淭his is probably the worst kept secret in Saanich as [Coun.] Haynes has been actively campaigning since he was elected,B次元官网网址� said Atwell.

Atwell made these comments in response to a series of questions sent to him, as well as the other members of council.

Haynes announced this candidacy for , but declined to say how his mayorship will differ from AtwellB次元官网网址檚 in policy and governing approach.

B次元官网网址淚t is very important that we continue with good governance of Saanich,B次元官网网址� said Haynes at the time. B次元官网网址淚 expect to be asked that question a lot, and I will decline answering that question until the campaign starts. Once the campaign starts, it will be clear the differences I will draw attention to between myself and the current mayor.B次元官网网址�

Atwell, for his part, appeared to welcome the coming contest, noting that nobody challenged former mayor Frank Leonard in 2002 and 2005.

B次元官网网址淲e need healthy debates at election time and it is very good for our democracy every time a candidate runs for office,B次元官网网址� he said.

In fact, had it not been for Harald Wolf, the 2008 race for mayor would have remained uncontested as well.

In 2011, Leonard faced two challengers: David Shebib, who won 173 votes, and David Cubberley, who finished with 9,529 votes. Leonard won that race with 11,151 votes.

If 2011 signalled a changing public mood, Atwell benefited from it in 2014, when Atwell beat Leonard by just over a thousand votes B次元官网网址� 14,178 to 13,152. Leonard had served as mayor of Saanich from 1996 to 2014 after serving as councillor since 1986. Haynes won his current seat on council in 2014 with 13,492 votes B次元官网网址� the fifth highest total among the eight candidates elected councillor.

While not readily comparable, their respective vote totals point to a potentially close race between the two candidates declared so far, provided no other credible candidates come forward.

Coun. Dean Murdock B次元官网网址� who gathered the most votes of any candidate running in 2014, but has not yet publicly declared his own intentions for 2018 B次元官网网址� said he expects a B次元官网网址渟pirited campaignB次元官网网址� from both declared candidates so far.

He also considers it likely that additional candidates for mayor will come forward between now and the actual nomination period, which opens Sept. 4 and closes Sept. 14. General voting day is Oct. 20.

B次元官网网址淚 hope it will lead to a vigorous debate about the kind of future we want for our community,B次元官网网址� said Murdock.

Coun. Colin Plant, who finished with the second-highest vote total of all candidates, said he was B次元官网网址渘ot particularly surprisedB次元官网网址� by HaynesB次元官网网址� announcement. B次元官网网址淢y initial reaction was one of respect because it takes courage to run for mayor against an incumbent, and indeed, to run for any elected position,B次元官网网址� he said.

This said, Plant hopes electoral politics (which is competitive by nature) wonB次元官网网址檛 get in the face of governance (which requires some measures of co-operation).

B次元官网网址淚 hope that the dynamics on [council] do not become politicized now because of the announcements,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淲e have nine months of work to do before the election, and many important issues to address for the residents of Saanich.B次元官网网址�

Coun. Leif Wergeland expects a different dynamic between Atwell and Haynes. B次元官网网址淭hey both know that only one of them will be sitting at the council table next year,B次元官网网址� said Wergeland, who was not surprised by HaynesB次元官网网址� announcement.

B次元官网网址淎s for council as a whole, I do not believe it will have an impact in any way. We will continue doing what our residents expect of us B次元官网网址� good governance,B次元官网网址� he said.

Coun. Susan Brice declined to answer the questions. B次元官网网址淎ctually, I wouldnB次元官网网址檛 want to comment on the election at this time,B次元官网网址� she said.