Civic voters in Port Coquitlam have elected a new mayor, replacing Scott Young, a controversial figure who is still serving a conditional sentence for assaulting his ex-girlfriend and a male companion in April 2007.
And even before the results were in Saturday night, the former mayor had left the building. He may even have dragged Mike Bowen, the candidate he supported down with him.
"Being endorsed by the former mayor may have hurt me a lot more than I'd anticipated,'' said Bowen
Port Coquitlam's newly elected mayor Mike Gordon, said voters have made their feelings clear.
"I can't believe it, I'm so excited, this is the first step to rebuilding our reputation as a city,'' he said. " Their voices were heard tonight."
On the Vancouver's North Shore, incumbent mayors kept their seats -- with Richard Walton facing no challengers
Meanwhile, in Surrey, Diane Watts starts her second term as mayor
"It speaks to the work we have done in the past three years,'' Watts said. "The general public likes a good functioning council they don't like dysfunction."
Over in Houston, B.C., the mayor made famous by a naked picture lost to challenger Bill Holmberg
In Whistler, Ken Melamed will lead the mountain town into the Olympics in 2010
In Coquitlam Maxine Wilson stepped aside.
"It's been 20 years of serving the public and this is an opportunity to pursue other things in our lives,'' she said.
In Victoria, shoe magnate Rob Reid accepted his defeat with aplomb
'We ran, learning as we went. I think we did fantastic. We had fun doing it,'' he said.
Dean Fortin beat Reid by only a few hundred votes to become Victoria's new mayor
"We are going to be Canada's social and environmental leader in Victoria. I'm going to step up to that challenge,'' he said.
The environment is one of many challenges to be faced by these mayors until the next race in 2011.
With a report by CTV British Columbia's Jon Woodward
