District 11 voting guide: An uninspiring race
If you are reading this before October 19, 2024, polls are now open, and you can vote in Halifax’s municipal election. How do you vote? I’m so glad you asked. Click RIGHT HERE for all the information you need on how to cast a ballot in this municipal election.
This district, like its neighbour District 13 and cross-harbour pal District 2, is another one of Halifax’s kind of suburban, pretty rural, coastal communities. The Coast sent a questionnaire to all candidates to find out who is up to the challenge of fixing the unsustainability of Canada’s Ocean Playgrounds. The Coast’s extensive questionnaire tests what each candidate knows about the issues facing the city ahead of the municipal election on Oct. 19.
For a hot minute there it looked like no one in District 11 was going to answer, but at long last The Coast got a response from one of the candidates so we’ll begin with…
The incumbent for District 11 demonstrated a strong understanding of the city’s issues and the municipal plans to fix them. Cuttell is now approaching the end of her first term and has had a relatively good tenure as a rookie councillor. Cuttell is usually pretty good at thinking about policy, and is often able to identify issues or gaps in policies. For example when writing about infrastructure in response to The Coast’s questionnaire she wrote, “While we are promoting the concept of walkable communities, there has been no direct planning – or investment – to develop the infrastructure to support walking, cycling, and rolling in the areas identified as ‘walkable communities’ or ‘transit oriented communities.’” Continuing to say that getting that right, is why the upcoming suburban plan is so important.
Although Cuttell often makes good arguments and votes, she’s also prone to the occasional clanger. Inconsistency in policy is expected in rookie councillors, but hopefully that inconsistency is something Cuttell can correct if she gets a second term.
Patty Cuttell’s website can be found here: pattycuttell.com
Bruce Holland did not fill out the Coast’s questionnaire. Holland is not a complete unknown; he was formerly an MLA for the Nova Scotia Liberals, he vied for but lost the race to be the leader of the Nova Scotia Liberals. He ran as a provincial Liberal in the 1998 and 2003 elections and was unsuccessful in both. Holland was also unsuccessful as a Progressive Conservative candidate in the 2017 provincial election. He was also a candidate for the federal Conservative party in 2019. In 2016 Holland also ran for council in District 12, and announced his candidacy in the newspaper he owned just because he could. If candidates complete the questionnaire after the deadline of September 18, The Coast will attempt to complete a review in time for October’s election. Until then, we cannot determine if this candidate is worth your vote and would advise sticking to the known candidate in your district. If you would like The Coast to assess Bruce Holland’s potential as a councillor, please ask him to complete the questionnaire.
Bruce Holland’s website can be found here: brucehollandfordistrict11.ca
Has not completed The Coast’s candidate questionnaire. If candidates complete the questionnaire after the deadline of September 18, The Coast will attempt to complete a review in time for October’s election. Until then, we cannot determine if this candidate is worth your vote and would advise sticking to the known candidate in your district. If you would like The Coast to assess Nathan Parker’s potential as a councillor, please ask him to complete the questionnaire.
Nathan Parker’s website can be found here:
Analysis
Although Patty Cuttell is the candidate who has demonstrated the best policy chops in this race, Bruce Holland is a perennial candidate and has come close to winning before. Being a perennial candidate in the current political climate and economy suggests a level of organization behind Holland, which could win him the day, as municipal elections historically have a pretty low turnout.
