Region of Queens Mayor Darlene Norman will not be seeking another term in the October municipal election. (Rick Conrad)

Darlene Norman has made it official, announcing she won’t seek re-election as mayor of the Region of Queens.

“I have decided not to reoffer simply because these last four years have made me realize that it was one thing to be a councillor, it’s another thing to be the mayor,” she said in an interview Wednesday.

“When you are a councillor and you vote in a certain way at a meeting and the vote didn’t go your way, then it’s over and done. When you are the mayor and you vote at a council meeting for something that you feel is very important and you lose the vote, … as the mayor you still have to speak on behalf of council for the vote. And I am the type of personality that finds it very difficult to speak favorably about an issue that I think is so wrong.”

Norman’s decision to serve one term as mayor caps a 20-year career in municipal politics, which began in 2000 when she was elected councillor in District 1, which covers the area of Hunts Point, White Point, Port Mouton and Port Joli.

She served as councillor for the area until 2016 when she was defeated by current councillor Kevin Muise.

In 2020, she decided to run for mayor, beating incumbent David Dagley and two other challengers – Susan MacLeod and Brian Fralic.

Norman said she enjoyed her time as mayor.

“I really liked being the mayor, I liked helping people, I liked meeting people. But I just have a very difficult time when I have to as mayor speak on behalf of council and it’s a decision of which I disagreed. Other than that, being the mayor was wonderful.”

In a Facebook post on Tuesday announcing her decision, she said council has achieved many good things over the past four years. But she said there were other things she regrets.

One of those was not building a new library. The Thomas H. Raddall Library has to leave its leased premises in downtown Liverpool by the end of December. After many stops and starts, council couldn’t agree on a new permanent location, so they decided to put it, at least temporarily, in the Liverpool Business Development Centre on White Point Road.

“We could have built a lovely library, it would have been open by now. For one reason or another, things went sideways. Council couldn’t agree on a location.”

Another frustration for Norman over the past four years is the concentration of municipal resources in the Liverpool, Brooklyn and Milton areas. She says council needs to find a way to improve services in other areas of Queens County, such as north Queens and areas outside the so-called urban core of Liverpool.

“Our biggest assessment areas are in rural Queens. … I look around at north Queens, east and west, people are paying incredible tax dollars in those parts of the county, despite people in the town of Liverpool who think they’re paying the biggest tax dollars. I’m just finding it really difficult with the Region of Queens and trying to find a balance with specnding in rural as well as central.”

She said building new accessible washroom and change room facilities at Beach Meadows Beach was council’s way to try to spread some municipal dollars outside the Liverpool-Brooklyn-Milton core. 

She said it’s one of council’s accomplishments that she’s proud of. Others include improvements in accessibility at other municipally owned facilities such as the Astor Theatre; working with a wind farm developer in Milton to create more renewable energy; advocating for new cell towers in north Queens and supporting affordable housing initiatives by Queens Neighbourhood Co-operative Housing.

“Those are good things, those are really positive things for Queens. … There have been so many more benefits than disappointments.”

And even though the region still struggles with staffing shortages, she said she’s very proud of what municipal employees have been able to accomplish. She said the region has only two building inspectors and one planner, at a time when development is on the rise. And she said their bylaw enforcement division is also understaffed, while complaints increase.

“People are so quick to criticize the staff of the Region of Queens and I really wish that perhaps people like that could be the mayor for a week or a month and actually sit in my chair and get a good understanding of how much work they do, because our staff work hard.”

Norman said another reason she won’t be reoffering in October’s municipal election is the abuse she said she’s received on social media.

“The cruel, the unkind, the unjust things that are said. And all people have to do is pick up a phone and they’ll know that all those rumours aren’t true. I tend to bite my tongue and … almost cut off my fingers not to write back some things on some posts that I’ve read. But it’s just not what I was prepared for.

“And I just don’t want it anymore. I’m a really good sleeper and when I don’t sleep at night because of stuff at council or things going on, I have too many people my age dropping dead and I want to do positive things that have positive results and are not attached with any negativism.”

She says she’s not sure what she’ll do after October. But it will include spending more time with her young grandson in Shelburne. And she plans to volunteer in her community of Port Medway and work on some of her art projects.

“I’ll find something to do. … I’m interested in helping my community of Port Medway. … I’m artistic, I might just discover who I am again. But I want to get out and do something that I want to do that doesn’t have the stressors that being the mayor does.”

Regardless of some of that stress, she says she’s grateful for the opportunity to be mayor of the Region of Queens for the past four years.

“I’d just like to thank the people of Queens for poviding me this wonderful privilege to represent Queens County,” she says. “And it is a privilege. We are a wonderful county, we have some of the best people in the world. And we are very attractive to people around the world who want to live here. So let’s welcome newcomers, regardless of what country or what culture they are. Diversity is wonderful for us. It makes us stronger. Thanks to the people of Queens.

“And I’m here for a couple of more months if there’s anything anybody needs any help with.”

The municipal election is set for Oct. 19. Former teacher Terry Doucette and business consultant Scott Christian have already announced their campaigns for mayor. People have until Sept. 10 to file their nomination papers. 

For the first time, voters in Queens will be able to make their choices by traditional ballot or by phone or online.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

Candidate information packages for the Oct. 19 municipal election are now available at Region of Queens offices. (Elections Nova Scotia Facebook)

If you want to run for Region of Queens mayor or council in October, information packages for candidates are now available at the region’s administration building on White Point Road.

The offices are open Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

To run for council or mayor, you must be a resident of Queens County as of March 9. 

The deadline to file your nomination papers is Sept. 10, though you can file the paperwork seven business days before the deadline, beginning Aug. 29. 

There are two advance polls: Oct. 12 and 15, with Election Day on Oct. 19.

This year, for the first time, voters will have three ways to cast their ballots – in person, by phone or online.

For more information, contact returning officer Ian Kent at ikent@regionofqueens.com or 902-646-1033.

Region of Queens Coun. David Brown says he’s not seeking re-election in October partly because he’s frustrated by some of the abusive comments he’s received in the past four years. This photo was taken when he launched his first election campaign in 2020. (David Brown councillor Facebook page)

When David Brown ran for Region of Queens council for the first time in 2020, he wanted to try to make things better for the people in his district.

Brown represents District 6, the areas around Port Medway, Mill Village, Greenfield and Labelle.

He was ready to work hard and bring his constituents’ issues to the council table. What he wasn’t prepared for, though, were some of the abusive comments he would receive after he was elected. 

“It’s online, it’s in person, it’s all the way across the spectrum in dealings with people,” Brown told QCCR.

“It just seems like after Covid, everybody was angry and they found people that thought the same way as them online and it became an echo chamber, that they feel they can say whatever they want because you’re a public figure. And really, that’s not the way to treat your friends, your family, your neighbours, people in your community that have just put their name out and step up and try to do the best for people.”

Brown has had enough and has decided not to reoffer in October’s municipal election. Some other council members have said privately that they’re also frustrated by some of the online abuse.

“I think people have legitimate concerns and they should absolutely voice those concerns. But when people start voicing those concerns is that politicans are corrupt because they didn’t decide the way they wanted to or they’re lining their pockets or we’re criminals and we should be thrown in jail. That’s not voicing your opinion, that’s anger and those are attacks. If somebody disagrees, I’m wholeheartedly in favour of people voicing their disagreements. It’s the tone of the disagreements and the way they voice them now, I’m just not interested in putting up with for another four years.”

It’s a familiar story for politicians around the province and at all levels of government. Amanda McDougall-Merrill, the mayor of Cape Breton Regional Municipality, has said that she won’t seek re-election partly because of threats she received as mayor.

And RCMP announced this week charges against two Alberta men for posting threats on YouTube and X or Twitter about Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh.

Brown says he hasn’t been threatened. But he’s still frustrated by the tone of some of the disparaging feedback he’s received.

“Maybe others don’t find the same thing but I found that it seems the harder you try to work, it seems like you’re upsetting people. As councillors we have to try to do the most good for the most people. But that means that some people are going to be unhappy but those people are very vocal and will attack now just because they didn’t get their way. And that’s really just not the way it should be.”

Robert Huish, an associate professor at Dalhousie University in Halifax, has studied civic and political engagement.

He says abusive and threatening comments rose exponentially after Donald Trump was elected U.S. president in 2016. And because the U.S. has such an influence on political and popular culture, Huish says that flavour of political vitriol has bled to other countries.

But he says toxicity has been a fixture in political discourse dating back to the 19th century.

“It’s something that is like a crescendo that we’re seeing right now,” Huish says.

“It’s coming to this big climax of political culture that seems to be producing and reproducing hatred through discourse and engagement rather than try to find something about a rules-based order and listening and those compromises that are so important in governance.

“The more that we’ve normalized the ability to describe and caricature people through derogatory or offensive names and stereotypes and the more that becomes common, the more it’s ultimately reproduced.”

He said social media is a great tool for politicians to engage with voters. But it’s also made it easier for people to attack politicians personally.

“Any sort of politics, especially municipal, it’s about engagement. And engagement is fostered on the ability to listen, respond, debate, discuss. And if we’re seeing the only feedback that’s getting the attention of politicians at the municipal level is this really heated vitriol then it really puts any politician in a position to not respond effectively to the issue at hand but try to deflect from whatever character attack is coming in.

“And now it begins to unfold into what can be called a democracy deficit, because it’s as if those who are holding the seeds o governance are just going to be attacked for being there, rather being pressured for change or to hear community concerns.”

Huish said putting pressure on politicians is a good thing. But personal attacks actually work against making our politics better. And he says they may be losing their effectiveness as people get tired of the lashing out.

“You can’t make people do something, but you can certainly put certain behaviour out of fashion quickly. And this might be getting to be too tired because it’s ineffective to try to have political engagement along these terms.”

For now, though, it’s pushing people like David Brown out of politics.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

Region of Queens councillors Jack Fancy, David Brown and Vicki Amirault have declared their intentions for October’s municipal election. (Rick Conrad)

With less than three months to go before October’s municipal election, incumbents and former councillors in Queens County are declaring their intentions.

So far, three of the seven sitting councillors have said they won’t run again. Three others have declared they will run again. 

District 1 Coun. Kevin Muise could not be reached. And Mayor Darlene Norman hasn’t yet announced her plans.

The region’s electoral boundaries have also been redrawn since the last election. So some people will be running in areas that look different than they did in 2020. (You can see the descriptions and maps of the new electoral boundaries on the Region of Queens website.)

District 6 Coun. David Brown is one of the councillors who won’t be reoffering. District 2 Coun. Ralph Gidney and District 7 Coun. Carl Hawkes are the others. Gidney’s area will be changed to District 3. Former councillor Susan MacLeod, who placed second in the 2020 mayor’s race, will be running to replace Gidney. 

Brown told QCCR that he feels he’s done what he can for his constituents. He represents the areas around Port Medway, Mill Village, Greenfield and Labelle. A newcomer to municipal politics in the 2020 election, he beat Jason Croft by about 130 votes. 

“I feel like I’ve accomplished as much as I can accomplish in council and I’m not really happy with the process, so I’m looking at different avenues for moving on,” he said. “I just feel like we’re a municipal council, but we don’t govern like a municipal council. We still govern like a town council.

“It seems like everything we do is centred around Brooklyn, Liverpool and Milton and any time we try to get anything done outside of that core, it’s a struggle.”

He said he wasn’t criticizing his fellow councillors or municipal staff. And he didn’t want to provide examples of some of the struggles he’s had.

But he said he feels the Liverpool area is over-represented on council, with five councillors who have some part of their district in Liverpool, Milton or Brooklyn. With the redrawn boundaries, that’s down to four. 

“Whoever goes into council from rural areas is just going to have to fight harder to try to get their areas recognized. Maybe if councilors coming in from Liverpool, Brooklyn, Milton, realize that they’re not funding 100 per cent of the cost of what happens in Queens County, but they’re expecting 100 per cent of the expenditures that are happening in Queens County, it’s not a fair and equitable solution for anybody.”

Brown said he was also frustrated with some of the criticism he’s received online and in person since he became councillor. He said he welcomes feedback from constituents, but he said sometimes it goes too far.

“There’s a lot of anger with people, in the public. They seem to think that because you’re a public figure they can say whatever they want to you. And council is not a high-paid position to put up with the amount of hours and the abuse that we’ve been taking from some people. So I’m just not interested in doing another four years of that.”

But Brown is still proud of the work he’s done as councillor, especially helping to save the South Shore Regional Airport in Greenfield and finding more money to support the region’s volunteer fire departments.

“I’m happy with what I did. I think council has done the best job that they could for the most people. It’s just most of the work is done in the centre of town and that frustrates me.”

District 3 Coun. Maddie Charlton will be trying for a second term. She joins District 4 Coun. Vicki Amirault and District 5 Coun. Jack Fancy, who have announced they will seek re-election.

Because of the boundary changes, Charlton will be running in District 2 this time. But it’s essentially the same area as she represents now in District 3, with the addition of part of White Point Road. 

Amirault will still run in District 4, but her area now includes Danesville and East Port Medway. It also has less of Brooklyn. 

And Fancy, who represents the Milton area, has said he plans to run in District 7, which is where he grew up. That area includes much of north Queens, including Caledonia and Kejimkujik National Park.

In 2020, Charlton made history at age 29 as the youngest person elected to Region of Queens council.

She told QCCR that she’s enjoyed her past four years in municipal politics.

“Although it has certainly come with challenges,” she said.

“I have certainly learned a lot over these last four years and I really think that younger representation at the council table is important.”

Along with bringing a more youthful perspective, she says she’s proud she’s been able to advocate for better access to council meetings for the public. She pushed for a regular evening meeting to make it easier for people to attend, as well as the upgrades necessary to livestream meetings.

Charlton says she believes that council’s communication with the public has improved.

“That was one of things that as a resident before I ran was something that was really obvious there was a bit of a disconnect there. There certainly have been improvements. And those are some that I’m really proud of as well. Besides the standing evening council meetings, I championed audio and video upgrades because people couldn’t hear when they tuned into the meetings. And I think it’s really important that residents can do that and access those meetings and listen to those meetings if they can’t be in the room. So I would say that’s still not perfect. But I think it has gotten better.”

Charlton said that communication breakdowns were partially responsible for the controversies over a new library. 

“I would say that we need to slow down before we speed up. … We hit the gas too fast and different information was evolving over cost and I think if we would have just slowed down, we could have pieced things together in a more sensible way to then confidently make a plan that we could endorse going forward.”

David Brown says he regrets that council didn’t commit to a new library. They decided instead to move the library, at least temporarily, to the business development centre on White Point Road.

“I would have liked to have seen a library built. Having an actual brick and mortar standalone library built and not having that happen and the way the process worked out was one of my biggest frustrations in the last term.”

Charlton says that if she’s re-elected, she’d like to advocate for more youth programming and recreational opportunities. And she says she hopes other young women take a crack at council this time around.

Brown says he’s not sure what he’ll do next, but he’s going to enjoy his free time. His advice for people who want to run for council? Do your homework and be prepared to stick up for your district.

“Just to be prepared it’s not going to be the happy smiley place that you think it’s going to be,” he says.

“You’re in for a fight every day. If you want to get your area recognized and you want an equitable amount of expenditures for all areas of the county, it’s not going to go smoothly. There’s a fight involved with it. There’s a lot of argument. You have to do your research, know the policies, know what you want going in and know what your consittunts want going in because you’re representing those constituents, you’re not representing your own personal interests. … You have to know what all those constituents want so you can make the best decision for the most people.”

The municipal election is Oct. 19. This year, for the first time, Queens County voters will be able to vote in person or online. 

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com