With the speech evaluations coming up and our recent discussions about rhetoric I thought I'd tell you about my experience running for Mayor of Saskatoon.It was in 1994 when a combination of my cynicism and big mouth propelled me into Saskatoon's mayoralty race.
Saskatoon was in the midst of a labour dispute. With the exception of essential services like law enforcement and fire suppression, Saskatoon was at a standstill.
One night -- after more than that number of beers -- I was voicing my opinion of how Saskatoon city council, especially the Mayor, had been handling the situation.
The crux of my argument involved the office of Mayor and how any two-bit shoe salesman could do a better job of it. (I bet you didn't know that I used to sell shoes?)
A week or so later, when it was announced that an election had been called to elect a new Mayor, a friend of mine casually asked if, based on my earlier comments, I intended to run. To both our surprise, I said, "Yes".
And so there you have it; the story of how my cynicism and big mouth propelled me into Saskatoon's mayoralty race.
How did I fare in the competition? Well suffice it to say, I did not win. I did, however, meet my objective; I did not finish last. Out of eight candidates I came in sixth, not too far behind the fifth place finisher who had been a councilman for nine years!
I had more votes than I had family and friends. Complete strangers were voting for me, a twenty-three-year-old full-time university student, to run their city.
During the process I received a lot of support from local media. I learned a great deal about democracy, politics, and the democratic process. Most importantly, I raised awareness of issues that were close to my heart. It was the best $100.00 I've ever spent.
The picture attached to this post is the cover of my 'official' election brochure. To see more from this brochure, CLICK HERE, or on the picture above.
2 comments:
Wow~ Yesterday or the day before yesterday I read about the youngest mayor in USA (18-year-old young man).
Strangely(?) 'Walter as mayor' looks quite natural for me. You've never broken your promise and showed us sincerity in class.
I hope you never forget the belief in your intrinsic motivation and confidence.
When I read the writing of someone I know, I could hear the voice and their unique tone lively. Yours also gave me that feeling - bouncy, witty and optimal tension^^
Thanks. Bye.
- Jin from class 2
Wow! A surprise story! You have lots and lots of valuable and exciting experiences that many others don’t. Most of all, your spontaneous “YES,” accepting your friend’s suggestion to run for Mayor is quite impressive and instructive. As a teacher, I’ve confronted quite a few moments to choose whether I should walk front and say something or walk back and stay silent. Often, however, I found myself keeping my voice down and only listening to what others are saying. Anything worthwhile takes me a lot of time and efforts, even though some people seemed to be born with courage, eloquence and leadership. The coming speech test could be a kind of practice for saying my own “YES.” Thank you for sharing your story. It was really good! (After my lovely^^ roommate's comment,....Shawna / Class 6)
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