WATCH: Brian Bowman sweeps to victory in mayoral race
WINNIPEG – Brian Bowman will be the next mayor of Winnipeg.
“I am excited to tell you that positive change is coming to city hall,” Bowman, 43, said and loud cheers erupted from his supporters. “What an incredible night.”
WATCH: Brian Bowman’s victory speech
The privacy lawyer and partner with the Pitblado firm, a Metis man who was born and raised in Winnipeg, said he ran a different campaign for a different style of leadership.
WATCH: Brian Bowman talks about his victory
“Negative old-school politics had no place in our campaign or in our city,” he said. “Winnipeg needed a new generation of leadership.”
VIDEO: Brian Bowman’s camp celebrates mayoral win
Bowman trailed former NDP MP and MLA Judy Wasylycia-Leis in early results, then pulled ahead as more polls came in, with Robert-Falcon Ouellette polling third and Gord Steeves a distant fourth.
WATCH: Global News projects that Brian Bowman will be the next mayor of Winnipeg
Supporters at Judy Wasylycia-Leis’ campaign headquarters seemed lost as they realized the longtime front-runner wasn’t going to win.
WATCH: Global News political panel discusses how Brian Bowman ran away with the mayoral election and where Judy Wasylycia-Leis went wrong.
Wasylycia-Leis’ concession speech was at times tearful as she thanked her workers, who had once been confident of victory, for their support.
VIDEO: Judy Wasylycia-Leis’ concession speech
“I’m truly grateful to all of you for all of your support through this long and hard campaign, and I’m humbled by your steadfast support,” she said.
Bowman has a tough job ahead as he inherits a city with little cash available to fix crumbling infrastructure.
WATCH: CJOB political panel looks at what Brian Bowman will need to do to cobble together an effective coalition at city hall
He’s promised to finish all six legs of bus rapid transit by 2030 and to keep tax hikes at the rate of inflation, goals Wasylycia-Leis called unrealistic in the dying days of the election.
Robert-Falcon Ouellette said he was thrilled with his third-place finish. The Cree man, who grew up poor with a single working mother, earned three degrees while in the military and now works at the University of Manitoba, rose from obscurity to pass former councillor Gord Steeves in the race.
WATCH: Robert-Falcon Ouellette thrilled with result
Steeves, once considered the No. 2 person in the race, finished a distant third after calling for Bowman to quit early in the race to avoid splitting the conservative vote.
WATCH: Gord Steeves comes in 4th in mayoral race
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