Marianne Meed Ward (née Meed; born January 4, 1966) is an American-born Canadian politician and former journalist who has served as the 29th and current mayor of Burlington since December 3, 2018.[1][2]
Marianne Meed Ward | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 29th Mayor of Burlington | |
| Assumed office December 1, 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Rick Goldring |
| Burlington City Councillor for Ward 2 | |
| In office December 1, 2010 – November 30, 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Peter Thoem |
| Succeeded by | Lisa Kearns |
| Constituency | Ward 2 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Marianne Meed January 4, 1966 Greeley, Colorado, U.S. |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Political party | Independent |
| Other political affiliations | Ontario Liberal (2007–2007) |
| Spouse | Peter Ward |
| Children | 3 |
| Residence | Burlington, Ontario |
| Alma mater | Carleton University (BJ) |
| Profession |
|
| Website | |
Early life and education
editBorn in Greeley, Colorado, to a Canadian father and American mother,[3] Meed Ward grew up in Kingston, Ontario and Toronto before moving to Ottawa where she earned a Bachelor of Journalism from Carleton University in 1989.
Career in media
editMeed Ward worked for Faith Today magazine from 1989, becoming managing editor in 1996. She resigned her position in February 1999 following a 'change in direction' at the magazine. She launched her own communications business, Meed Ward Media, providing writing, editorial, consulting or teaching services to a range of clients including Chatelaine, Vision TV, Ryerson University, Tyndale College, CHCH TV, Crossroads Communications, and the Toronto Sun where she served as a weekly columnist covering faith and ethics, and later covering the 905 area of the Greater Toronto Area.[4] She stood down from the position to contest the 2010 election.
Career in politics
editMeed Ward first entered politics by running for Ward 1 councillor in the 2006 municipal election, losing to Rick Craven. In 2007, she ran as the Ontario Liberal Party candidate for Burlington, coming second to PC candidate Joyce Savoline by only 1824 votes,[5] and receiving 37.81% of the vote. After 2007, Meed Ward returned to journalism, before deciding to run for election municipally. After moving to downtown Burlington (Ward 2), she ran for municipal council again in 2010, defeating incumbent Peter Thoem. She was re-elected in 2014, before running in 2018 for mayor, and defeating incumbent Rick Goldring.
Mayor of Burlington
editMeed Ward was up against two-term incumbent Rick Goldring and former Burlington MP, Mike Wallace. She campaigned on stopping overdevelopment in Burlington, specifically downtown. She had also campaigned on addressing traffic congestion, flood risk, protecting the city's tree canopy, tax reform and building trust between the community and council. Meed Ward won the 2018 municipal election with 23,360 votes and receiving 46.04% of the vote.[6] In December 2018, the Ontario Provincial Police laid criminal charges against a third-party advertiser for alleged election spending violations in an advertising campaign _targeting Meed Ward. By April 2022, all charges had been withdrawn.[7][8]
In October 2022, Meed Ward was re-elected for a second term, winning 77.95% of the popular vote and receiving almost 25,000 more votes than the runner-up.[9] She ran on a platform for reasonable development, adding more community centres and parks, and cutting red tape.[10] Less than 28% of eligible voters participated in the 2022 election, down from almost 40% in the 2018 election.[11][12]
| 2022 Burlington municipal election: Mayor | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Marianne Meed Ward (X) | 30,135 | 77.95% | |
| Jim Kerr | 5,194 | 13.43% | |
| Anne Marsden | 1,636 | 4.23% | |
| Steve Rieck | 1,113 | 2.88% | |
| William Tuck | 583 | 1.51% | |
| Majority | 24,941 | — | |
| Turnout | 38,661 | — | — |
Meed Ward is the current Chair of the Ontario Big City Mayors caucus (OBCM), composed of Ontario city mayors with populations of 100,000 or more who collectively represent nearly 70% of Ontario’s population.[13]
Personal life
editMeed Ward currently resides in Burlington with her husband Peter and their three children.[14]
References
edit- ^ "Councillor beats out Burlington incumbent in contentious mayoral race". Toronto Sun, October 23, 2018.
- ^ Bkila, John (November 22, 2018). "Residents invited to the new Burlington council's inaugural meeting Dec. 3". InsideHalton.com. Retrieved February 1, 2019.
- ^ Peters, Ken (November 5, 2010). "Burlington elects a former Miss Canada — and a political pit bull". The Hamilton Spectator. ISSN 1189-9417. Retrieved February 1, 2019.
- ^ "Toronto News - Latest Headlines & Breaking News". Toronto Sun. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
- ^ "CBC.ca Ontario Votes 2014". www.cbc.ca. Retrieved February 1, 2019.
- ^ "2018 Election Results - Official". www.burlington.ca. October 31, 2018. Retrieved February 1, 2019.
- ^ Mitchell, Don (December 16, 2019). "OPP looking for man connected to alleged election fraud in 2018 Burlington mayoral campaign". [Global News]. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
- ^ "Statement from Mayor Regarding Criminal Charges Laid Against Third-Party Advertiser in Burlington's 2018 Municipal Election Campaign". December 16, 2019.
- ^ "Burlington mayor re-elected in landslide victory, along with all 6 city councillors". [CBC News]. October 25, 2022. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
- ^ Cilliers, Roland (September 25, 2022). "Marianne Meed Ward, candidate for Burlington mayor". [Inside Halton]. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
- ^ "City of Burlington releases official election results from Oct. 22, 2018". October 25, 2018.
- ^ "City of Burlington releases official results from 2022 Burlington municipal election". October 27, 2022.
- ^ "About Us". ONTARIO’S BIG CITY MAYORS (OBCM). January 1, 2024. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
- ^ "globeandmail.com: Candidate biography: Meed Ward, Marianne". v1.theglobeandmail.com. Retrieved February 1, 2019.