It was nothing if not a vote of confidence for Langley City council at the polls on Saturday night.
Mayor Peter Fassbender handily won a third term in office, while five of six sitting council members were given a mandate by voters to carry on.
One-term council member Rudy Storteboom was the only incumbent to be unseated, with former City councillor Ted Schaffer earning the third highest number of votes, behind Rosemary Wallace and Teri James. (Full results on page 16). Schaffer previously served for 18 years on City council before stepping away from politics in 2008.
As the clock passed 8 p.m. — the time the polls closed — Fassbender stepped away from the gathering in the Coast Hotel, to find a quiet place to learn the results from the municipality’s single voting station at Nicomekl Elementary.
As he returned and read the names of each successful candidate in the room, cheers went up for Wallace, James and Gayle Martin, as well as for Rob McFarlane and Candy Ashdown, who were both successful in their bids for the two City seats on the Langley school board.
“The results are heartening,” Fassbender told the gathering.
However, the celebratory atmosphere inside the room was tempered by Storteboom’s unseating.
“We’re going to miss Rudy, but I know he’s going to be around in the community,” Fassbender said. “Rudy, you’re a good man, with a good heart.”
As they thanked their supporters, each of the councillors took a moment to acknowledge Storteboom’s service to the community and wish him well.
“Thank you, Rudy, for being beside me and supporting me,” said a tearful Wallace. “I’m going to miss you.”
“Rudy, sometimes democracy sucks,” said McFarlane.
Storteboom, in return, offered his thanks to the community and the people who supported his campaign.
“It was an honour and a privilege to serve. I did my duty to the community, and I encourage others to do the same.”
Overall, said Fassbender, he was pleased with results.
“I think we have a council we can work with,” he said.
“There’s no candidate (elected) who has a single agenda,” he told the jubilant crowd, in reference to medical marijuana advocate Randy Caine, who threw his hat in the political ring after his Langley City dispensary was raided by police and closed in July.
Caine placed last in the polls.
Fassbender later acknowledged that he’s “been concerned about Randy Caine’s agenda for a while.”
“I want to support and help (people who need medical marijuana) but not in an illegal way. We will continue to work with Health Canada to do that,” he said.
In the City, 3,583 — or 20.8 per cent — of 17,163 eligible voters cast a ballot in Saturday’s election. That’s down slightly from the 21.1 per cent who voted in the 2008 election.
At the advance poll, 676 City residents cast a ballot this year, up 0.7 per cent from the previous election.
Complete City results
Mayor:
Peter Fassbender 2455
Ron Abgrall 983
Council:
Rosemary Wallace 1973 (inc)
Teri James 1790 (inc)
Ted Schaffer 1750 (e)
Gayle Martin 1655 (inc)
Dave Hall 1635 (inc)
Jack Arnold 1521 (inc)
Not Elected:
Rudy Storteboom 1485
Paul Albrecht 1209
Catfish Potesta 1157
Dave Humphries 828
Darrell Krell 815
Randy Caine 814
School Trustee
Robert McFarlane 2233 (inc)
Candy Ashdown 1845 (e)
Not Elected:
Stacey Cody 1424
