Bay Roberts had good choices for deputy mayor, says Seymour

By Olivia Bradbury / Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

When Bay Roberts’ new town council held its first regular meeting on October 14, the first item on the agenda was to elect a deputy mayor. Ultimately, it was Neil Kearley, the only newcomer to municipal government among the councillors, who won the role. But it wasn’t automatic.

Mayor Geoff Seymour kicked off the proceedings by asking for nominations for the position. Councillor Ross Petten nominated Kearley. It was seconded by councillor Frank Deering, and Kearley accepted the nomination. 

Councillor Silas Badcock then nominated councillor Perry Bowering. It was seconded by councillor Dean Franey, with Bowering also accepting the nomination. There being no further nominations, Seymour invited each of the nominees to speak before holding a vote.

“We all approached the election in different ways in terms of how we tried to seek out support from the community of Bay Roberts,” said Kearley, who topped the poll on October 2 collecting 1,120 votes. “I ran to be a councillor. Certainly, a large number of people in Bay Roberts responded to that, and I was pleased to get a good turnout. I accept the nomination based on the voting interest of the people of Bay Roberts.”

Bowering remarked that he has been involved in municipal government for a long time. While this is his second consecutive term, he has served three in total, with his first having been from 2001-2005. 

“I’ve been on just about every committee on council, and volunteering and working on both sides,” said Bowering, “I feel I’m very knowledgeable of just about everything that’s on the go with council.” 

Bowering said he would step up to the plate as deputy mayor if it meant he could help even further, adding that he also had a good voter turnout; Bowering received the second-greatest number of votes at 943. “I guess people have just seen the work that I’ve done over the years, and I’m game for anything.”

With the pitches made, Town Clerk Christine Bradbury distributed ballots to each of the council members. Badcock, who was attending the meeting online due to illness, texted Bradbury his vote so she could fill out a ballot on his behalf. Bradbury then collected the ballots, and she and Chief Administrative Officer Dave Tibbo counted the votes. Finally, Bradbury announced that Kearley had won the vote for deputy mayor. Kearley accepted.

“I’ll just say that no matter what way that vote went, Bay Roberts would have been in good hands with two very faithful individuals,” said Mayor Seymour.