Mayor Ryan Bater has conceded the North Battleford mayor’s race and has offered his congratulations to David Gillan on his election victory.
Bater told the News-Optimist he phoned Gillan to “congratulate him and I have offered him any support that I can give that he’s interested in in the transition and moving forward. I wish him and the new council all the best.”
Results will become official on Thursday morning. Unofficial results have Gillan winning with 1,198 votes to 988 for Bater.
It will be a short transition period, with the new mayor and council being sworn in in just a week, on Nov. 16.
As for the result, Bater acknowledged that as mayor “you do end up carrying the weight of a lot of the challenges of the city, rightly or wrongly.”
Still, he felt his campaign did “resonate with a lot of people,” focused on achievements of the last four years.
“We felt really good about it. But there was more people supporting the new mayor’s campaign. That’s just how it is.”
The outgoing mayor says he has no hard feelings about the result.
“I really enjoyed my time on city council the last eight years. I’ve learned a lot, developed some really good relationships. I’m proud of the work we’ve done. And you know, I’m going to be thinking of our achievements as I move forward but for now, my watch has ended.”
As for the future, “I’m going to focus on my own personal life and my family, and move on.”
