MODL Mayor Carolyn Bolivar Getson and challenger Caleb Wheeldon met for a debate ahead of the MODL election. Photo: Stone Court Studios
The Municipality of the District of Lunenburg’s mayoral race heated up this week as the candidates met face to face for a debate.
The candidates met in person but in-person attendance was very limited and most in attendance were online.
Incumbent Carolyn Bolivar Getson positioned herself as the tried and true candidate that can see the community through these tumultuous times, “The world has changed in the past months and we need stable experienced leadership to continue to pave the way forward as we rebuild the economy.”
Challenger Caleb Wheeldon on the other hand presented himself as something new, “I submit to you that the way forward is not the same old politics of the past, the way forward is a fresh perspective and a vision of solidarity with the people of our community.”
In the debate, both candidates gave opening and closing remarks and they answered five questions that both candidates had seen before the debate.
Overall the event was very civil with both candidates focusing on themselves rather than each other.
The two main clashes took place during the questions.
(An issue on transit was also raised in the debate which we will be doing a full story on tomorrow)
The first arose over the issue of internet access, both candidates expressed their plans to work towards 100 per cent coverage and Bolivar Getson mentioned the strides they’ve made in her tenure which has seen the regions coverage go from 75 per cent to over 95 per cent currently. Wheelson didn’t feel that was a noteworthy achievement, “Bragging about 95 per cent of homes being connected is a disgrace, we can start bragging about successes when we have them.”
Wheeldon went on to say that the internet is a necessity in 2020 and all governments have a responsibility to ensure it is available to their citizens.
The other point of contention arose over the environment with Wheeldon pointing out that the MODL did not recognize the climate crisis officially until last year. He claims that the current plans have not addressed enough in the short term and he would like to do more in that area.
In response, Bolivar-Getson listed a long list of initiatives she has overseen during her tenure that have seen the MODL become less reliant on fossil fuels and transitioning to green energy sources. She also says a recent survey that indexed residential and commercial carbon footprints will be used to regulate carbon outputs region.
The full debate which was put on by Stone Court Studios is available online.
