WESTLOCK – Westlock County Div. 7 Coun. Christine Wiese will remain as reeve until October 2023 and thanked her council colleagues for their “support” and “patience” throughout her first 12 months in the role.
At the county’s Oct. 25 organizational meeting, Wiese and Div. 5 Coun. Isaac Skuban were both nominated for the position, but Skuban declined to let his name stand negating a vote. In addition, Div. 3 Coun. Ray Marquette will return as deputy reeve as Div. 6 Coun. Stuart Fox-Robinson, who thanked Wiese for her leadership and said she’s “done a tremendous job”, flatly declined a secret-ballot nomination to vie for the deputy-reeve role.
Akin to a mayor, the reeve acts as the chair of council meetings and is the group’s spokesperson but where the two positions differ is that a mayor is elected every four years by the entirety of the ratepayers, while a reeve is elected annually by council — in the Village of Clyde the mayor position mirrors the reeve. Wiese is only the second woman to serve as reeve of Westlock County following former Div. 3 Coun. Lou Hall, who sat in the head chair from 2017 to 2019.
“I couldn’t do the job without the support of council. They’ve been patient and I asked them to continue being patient as I continue to grow into the role,” said Wiese the day after the meeting, adding she’s received tremendous support from administration, as well as her family and residents. “It’s a big role and I appreciate them hanging in there with me.”
Wiese, a rookie politician who handily won her seat on council in the Oct. 18, 2021, municipal election by 130 votes, followed up by claiming the reeve’s seat following a secret-ballot win at the Oct. 26, 2021, organizational meeting over incumbent Coun. Jared Stitsen, who’d served as reeve from 2020-2021 and has been the Div. 2 rep since 2017. At that same 2021 meeting, Marquette beat both Stitsen and Skuban in the secret-ballot vote for deputy reeve.
Looking back on her first year, Wiese said she didn’t initially appreciate “how big” the role was and reached out to past councillors and reeves for advice and mentorship “that has really helped me grow.”
“I’ve tried to participate in as many seminars or regional board meetings because I think it’s beneficial not only for council but the county as a whole,” she said. “I’ve had to be patient with myself and come to the realization that it’s OK to reach out for help and support. Their insight and support has really helped me.”
Wiese said after a tough start to their mandate, including the abrupt resignation of former CAO Kay Spiess in March, council has gotten its footing. Under the guidance of new CAO Tony Kulbisky, who signed a six-year contract at the end of August, they’ve already started deliberations on Budget 2023, and are about to begin strategic planning sessions soon and want to take “more of a governance stance.”
“The first year was pretty rocky, with a majority of new councillors, a new reeve and the changes in CAOs. But now we’re finally getting settled in and moving on the important things we should be doing as councillors for our community,” said Wiese. “I’m so optimistic about what’s coming in the next year and the next couple of years. I think we’re finally hitting our stride.”
