Tantramar Mayor-elect Debbie Wiggins-Colwell. Campaign photo

Debbie Wiggins-Colwell won a decisive victory Monday in the Tantramar mayoralty contest winning more votes than her two rivals combined.

“I am so thrilled about it, I really am,” she said as she celebrated her victory with family and friends at her home in Dorchester.

“I’m ready to get to work,” she added, “bringing transparency and collaboration and working with the council.”

Before amalgamation in 2023, Wiggins-Colwell  was mayor of Dorchester and had been serving as Tantramar’s deputy mayor before the May 11th election.

She was one of seven members of the previous council who ran in the election. Three others — Josh Goguen, Allison Butcher and Barry Hicks — won re-election, but Andrew Black, Bruce Phinney and Michael Tower went down to defeat.

Ward 3 Councillor-elect Tori Weldon. Campaign photo

Former CBC journalist Tori Weldon topped the polls in Ward 3 which includes most of the former town of Sackville.

“I’m really honoured that the people have put their faith in me and I’m really excited to get down to work,” Weldon said during a celebration at her home in Sackville.

When asked why she thinks voters turned to her, Weldon said people were ready for a change.

“I did my best to run a really solid campaign,” she added. “I knocked on doors and talked to people and put up signs. I think I’m also just really lucky to have such a good community here.”

Haidee Robertson, former co-owner of Blooms Flower Shop, will also be representing Ward 3 on the new council.

“I’m surprised and I’m excited,” Robertson said when reached by phone.

Ward 3 Councillor-elect Haidee Robertson. Facebook photo

“I ran because I felt I had something to offer and I’ve got things that I’m interested in accomplishing,” she added.

When asked what she would like to accomplish on council, Robertson mentions subsidized housing.

“That’s a big thing,” she says adding that as a part-time, registered nurse at the Drew Nursing Home, she sees people in vulnerable positions.

“I just think we’re not looking after people who can’t look after themselves,” she adds.

“There is land that the town could make available to certain organizations that are interested in building subsidized housing.”

Ward 1 Councillor-elect Alyssa Greene. Campaign photo

Alyssa Greene won a narrow, four-vote victory in Ward 1 which includes the former Village of Dorchester and surrounding LSDs.

She was still on the job at Canada Post when Warktimes called to ask about her priorities.

“I think that my priority really is representing the many things that the people of Dorchester brought up to me on my door-to-door campaign,” Greene says.

“The roads and the crosswalks and the sidewalks, they all need to be accessible for people who have limited mobility or visual or hearing impairments or any other type of disability,” she adds.

“It’s all interconnected and everything that we work on as a council needs to give consideration to that interconnection of all the communities and the people within them.”

Greene says she’s looking forward to working with Debbie Wiggins-Colwell as mayor.

“So I’m happy that we see some good results. And the results with the rest of the councillors I think are pretty good as well. We have some good people there that are going to serve well.”

Incumbent Councillor Barry Hicks eked out a narrow, re-election victory in Ward 2 which includes Frosty Hollow and communities such as British Settlement, Wood Point and Rockport.

In Ward 5, former Point de Bute fire chief Wayne Wells won a more decisive victory, while Kristen LeBlanc was acclaimed in Ward 4 which includes Midgic, Cookville, Centre Village and the site of the proposed NB Power gas plant.

Ward 5 Councillor-elect Wayne Wells. Campaign poster