Julia Hanna kicked off her bid to be Oakville mayor on Saturday.
Balloons, buttons and volunteer sign-up sheets filled Hanna’s North Oakville restaurant Ritorno, as the long-time restaurant owner officially launched her second attempt to win the town’s top political job.
"It’s time for a change; it’s time for a fresh start," she told a crowd of supporters. "It’s time for Oakville to reach its full potential."
Promising to listen to young people, seniors and Oakville’s growing new immigrant community, Hanna said the town’s increasing diversity is its strength.
She said she offers a collaborative leadership style that will bring people together and inspire town staff and councillors to do their best work.
"Compassion and empathy are not weaknesses; they are strengths," she said. "I don’t want to tell my council what to do. I want to empower my council to represent their community."
Critical of "rushed" development in North Oakville, Hanna said the community deserves the same quality of life as the rest of the town and should have parks, community centres and transportation infrastructure.
She added that her nearly four decades as an Oakville business owner, as well as her role as a community builder and leader, have given her the skills that she needs to lead the town.
A former chamber of chamber of commerce chair, Hanna previously owned downtown restaurants Paradiso and Ristorante Julia before opening Ritorno. She also founded two Oakville not-for-profit organizations.
"When people say I’m not a politician, I do a happy dance," she said. "You don’t only get to know your community by being in politics. In fact, I think you know your community better when you’re working in it."
Finished second in the 2018 election
In 2018, Hanna finished second to Rob Burton in a three-way battle for the mayor’s job.
Burton, who has held the position since 2006, won the election by 3,487 votes. He captured 49.6 per cent of the vote, while Hanna received 42 per cent.
Third-place finisher John McLaughlin, who has indicated he doesn’t intend to run again, earned the remaining 8.4 per cent.
"Since the last election, I’ve had four more years to listen, to learn and to understand even better the community that I love," said Hanna.
While Burton announced his intention to run again in April, he has not yet registered as a candidate in October’s municipal election.
Races for Wards 5 and 7
All incumbent Oakville councillors except Ward 7’s town councillor Jasvinder Sandhu have registered to run again in the Oct. 24 municipal election.
Three candidates – Nabil Bin Arif, Amir Henry and Shahab Khan – have put their names forward for that seat.
There is also a battle for the Ward 7 regional councillor seat.
Nav Nanda has registered to run for the Ward 7 town and regional seat, as has incumbent Pavan Parmar. The two were involved in an extremely tight race for the position in 2018, the inaugural election for Ward 7.
Parmar captured the seat with 570 votes, while second-place finisher Shahrez Daniyal Hayder earned 502 votes. Nav Nanda finished in third place with 491 votes.
In Ward 5, local law clerk Michael Reid is challenging five-term councillor Marc Grant for the town council seat.
Two Burlington politicians – former MPP Jane McKenna and current Halton District School Board chair Andrea Grebenc – have registered to run for chair of Halton Region.
Gary Carr has held the job since 2006. Carr recently told Oakville News that he would run again, although earlier this year, he apparently told colleagues that he planned to retire. So far, he has not registered as a candidate.
Anyone interested in running for a position as mayor, councillor, school board trustee or regional chair has until Aug. 19 to register as a candidate.
The town is holding an information session on July 4, 2022 for interested candidates.