Winnipeg mayoral candidate calls for blackout on city announcements during election
Kevin Klein says incumbents have an unfair advantage when official city announcements double as campaign stops.
WINNIPEG — Winnipeg mayoral candidate Kevin Klein is calling for a 30-day blackout on official city announcements by the mayor and council during the civic election campaign.
In a Sunday news release, he proposed that during that period, city releases would come directly from departments, not from candidates.
He also called for changes to the council calendar so meetings would not fall in the 45 days before the election.
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"There should not be a benefit [to] the incumbent when we're having an election. Democracy says there shouldn't be. It should be fair, reasonable and equal for everyone," Klein said in a Monday interview.
He said incumbents have an unfair advantage because announcements of official city policies and programs can also double as campaign stops.
Manitoba has a 60-day blackout on official announcements before a provincial election, but the city does not have a mandatory blackout period before municipal announcements.
During their last meeting of the term on Sept. 24, city councillors passed items related to issues that have become topics of discussion in the campaign.
These included full shields for transit drivers and the establishment of a fourth emergency response, a last-minute motion from Mayor Scott Gillingham on the executive policy committee agenda on Sept. 15.
After the committee approved the plan, Gillingham’s campaign team put out a news release announcing the decision.
Klein also said mayoral or council staff working on campaigns should be required to take unpaid leave.
He called for the city to expand the integrity commissioner’s mandate to investigate complaints during the election campaign period.
Under the current rules, the integrity commissioner cannot receive any complaints during the campaign period alleging a council member has breached the code of conduct.
Klein also wants rules to restrict the chief electoral officer from holding the positions of chief administrative officer or chief financial officer for four years after an election.
The rules would also prohibit anyone who has been CAO or CFO within the four-year period before an election from becoming the chief electoral officer.
The city already imposes some restrictions on what council members can announce during the campaign period.
City council's code of conduct states that no member can make any public funding announcement related to spending from specific reserve and grant funds within 60 days of the election.
It also prohibits members from using the services of city staff for election-related purposes during hours when they are paid by the city.
A spokesperson for Gillingham, who is running for a second term as mayor, told CBC News in an email there have been no announcements about new city funding during the campaign period.
Staff from Gillingham's office working on the campaign "are doing so on their own time, including by taking personal vacation days," spokesperson Colin Fast wrote.
"Making pre-emptive suggestions about unfair elections undermines the integrity of our public service," Fast wrote.
Klein and Gillingham are among 12 candidates running for mayor.
The others are Mazher Alam, Johnny Calderon, Chris Clacio, Tracey Drexler, Brad Gross, Umar Hayat, Joshua Pagdato, Noah Redden, Mike Vogiatzakis and Don Woodstock.
With files from CBC News