Community safety, housing support and improving transit safety are among the priorities for Tracey Drexler if she is elected as Winnipeg’s next mayor. Drexler is the only woman among 12 candidates running for mayor this year and said she offers a different viewpoint on the issues compared to the other candidates. “We are one of the greatest cities in the world. We deserve better,” Drexler said. “Our citizens deserve better, and we need to look at things from a different perspective with compassion and build each other up and lift ourselves out of this crisis. We can set the precedent for the rest of Canada to follow.” In an interview with CTV News Winnipeg’s Senior News Anchor Maralee Caruso, Drexler said she plans to lead with compassion on issues such as homelessness. She wants to seize derelict properties and turn them over to Indigenous housing providers to create transitional housing. “I’m looking at modular or temporary housing to get people off the street and out of bus shelters so that they have privacy, dignity and a place where they can recover. Drexler is also in favour of creating a new police service for Winnipeg Transit, modelled after the Canadian Railway Enforcement Plan. She said it builds on the current community safety officer program in Winnipeg. “It’s peaceful greeters on the bus that deal with the logistics of fare collection and having an eye on the bus,” she said. “You know sometimes if there’s just an eye, people will behave a little bit better. And then the police force for the transit would be just dedicated to the transit, know the insides and outs, and be there when something happens that they’re needed for.” Drexler said the officers would have full peace officer status and be able to make arrests, if necessary. Drexler also responded to two previous controversies in her life. She was criticized in 2018 while running for school trustee in the St. James-Assiniboia School Division for comments she made mocking an injury to then-premier Brian Pallister and also made a post suggesting protesters should be run over. Drexler said she was a “jerk” at the time and regretted the comments. “I’ve definitely grown as a person over the last 10 years,” she said. “You can ask anyone that I’ve ever worked with. Like I could get along with anyone. I work well with anyone.” Drexler is one of 12 mayoral candidates CTV News will profile in sit-down interviews ahead of the Oct. 28 election. The full interview can be viewed online.
