There’s no question the race in Rideau-Vanier ward is one of the most competitive in the city, but a longshot candidate’s attacks against incumbent Mathieu Fleury during a debate in Lowertown on Wednesday night were much more personal than what we’ve seen so far.
David George Oldham called Fleury a “bad councillor” and said, on several occasions, that he “disgusted” him.
Regardless of the question, Oldham often used his allotted time to attack Fleury, despite reminders from the moderator to answer the question.
Oldham also told the audience that residents should be nice to each other and take care of their own issues instead of calling their city councillor (even though he paid $100 to enter the race to ostensibly become a councillor).
When an audience member challenged Oldham about his behavior after the debate had ended and people were milling around, the candidate called the man a homophobic slur and then left.
Oldham is one of 15 candidates who belong to the “property owners slate” — a group campaigning on a promise to restore weekly garbage pickup and kill the city’s green-bin program if they become councillors.
He’s the only urban candidate to join the slate, which also pledges to send Hydro Ottawa’s profits back to its customers rather than giving them to the city government as a dividend and to end the spreading of sludge from the city’s sewage plant as fertilizer on farm fields.
Not long after entering the race, Oldham told the Citizen he was concerned about parking and the high cost of OC Transpo bus fares. He also said he wanted to clawback councillors’ salaries and, though he offered no specific example at the time, said he would respond to constituents in a “more timely and appropriate manner” than Fleury has.
With the election less than two weeks away, it’s no surprise that candidates are starting to sharpen their swords.
Fleury’s leading challengers Marc Aubin and Catherine Fortin LeFaivire do this by focusing on the incumbent’s record and what they would do differently if elected. We’ve not seen those kind of details from Oldham.
Voters in Rideau-Vanier have one more chance to see the candidates square off. The final debate will be Friday at 7 p.m. at the Sandy Hill Community Centre (250 Somerset St. East).
Read more election coverage at ottawacitizen.com/tag/ottawa-votes
