As the municipal election nears, the first debate between mayoral candidates has been slated for Sept. 12. There are about a dozen candidates who have either announced their intent to run for mayor or officially entered the race, but only five will be participating in the debate: Tim Cartmell, Rahim Jaffer, Andrew Knack, Omar Mohammad and Michael Walters. Former four-term councillor Tony Caterina didn’t make the cut for the debate. According to a Leger report, Knack leads with 12 per cent, closely followed by Cartmell at 10 per cent. Walters, Jaffer and Mohammad follow behind with seven, five and four points, respectively. Ward pihêsiwin Coun. Cartmell was the first to announce his intentions to run for mayor and has been in campaign mode since November. While Cartmell has been the front-runner, he’s fallen back in popularity after missing a crucial vote on infill housing. “With Mayor Amarjeet Sohi announcing he’s not going to run, and then Knack coming back into the race, it really changed the dynamic from one that looked like Cartmell was going to win in a walk, to now a very close race,” said political analyst John Brennan in an interview. Hosted by the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce (ECC), the debate will be held at the JW Marriott Edmonton Ice District at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 12. It will be the largest debate of the election and the only one to be televised across the city. Tickets and details can be found here. Brennan believes the debate will be an opportunity for lesser-known candidates like Jaffer and Mohammad to get noticed and potentially generate momentum for the rest of the campaign. “It’s the clips that come out of the debate that are going to be important,” said Brennan. “Like who really does well and who’s perceived to have done well.” Doug Griffiths, ECC president and CEO, said he hopes the debate will help people make up their minds. “What we need is some defining moment that helps Edmontonians choose their destiny,” said Griffiths during the debate announcement. According to data from the Leger report, nearly 60 per cent of respondents believe Edmonton is on the wrong track, with 33 per cent thinking the city is headed in the right direction. Some of the top voting issues in the report include lowering taxes, reducing poverty, and reducing spending and fiscal restraint. The municipal election is Oct. 20, with advanced voting from Oct. 7 to 11.
