 MACKINNON, Stuart |
GRN | 48415 |
Good friends rejoice: Andrea Reimer, Stuart Mackinnon and Andrea's daughter – photo Todd Wong
“You beat Andrea's numbers!” exclaimed Andy Miller – Andrea's husband and Stuart Mackinnon's sign man. In the 2002 Vancouver civic election, Andrea Reimer grabbed the final 9th spot for Vancouver School Board with 44951 votes – the highest vote count for an elected civic Green. Stuart's 48415 for 2008 Vancouver Parks Board beat that number by 3464. For the 2008 election, Andrea ran as a council candidate for Vision Vancouver and received 59148.
“I'm overwhelmed,” said Mackinnon on Sunday afternoon. He was spending some time visiting his father when I called him by cellphone. “My father is very happy for me,” he shared. Stuart's paternal grandfather George Ernest Lawson Mackinnon had been the Kootenay East member of parliament for the National Government party (Conservatives) from 1940-45.
“I never expected to win,” Stuart admitted, even though advance polls had the COPE/Vision/Green slate leading in races for council, parks board and school board. Mackinnon was the only Green party member on the combined slate. He is only the 3rd ever Green Party member elected in the Metro Vancouver area. During the campaign when I had asked him who his campaign manager was, “You're looking at him.” was his reply. Mackinnon had a very small but dedicated campaign team of volunteers consisting of friends and team members from the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team. There had been no party headquarters or staffers for the civic Green Party. Mackinnon ran his campaign from his newly bought formerly owned small condominium which he shares with his faithful Shiba Inu dog friend named Kiku.
In 2005 Stuart Mackinnon received 37824 votes for 14th place, 6738 votes behind COPE's Spencer Herbert who received 44562 votes. The previous highest vote count for a Green Party Parksboard candidate was 32613 in 2002 for Catherine Carter who finished 4 places out of winning in 11th spot – but she still beat two NPA parks candidates. In 1999, Roslyn Cassells was elected to the Vancouver Parks Board for the Green Party with 31, 694 votes.
When the COPE / Vision / Green slate was released on September 9th, I predicted that the Green Party was the big winner. Read my article: Vision/COPE/Greens make a civic slate deal… Stuart Mackinnon of the Green Party is the real winner!
In the 08 Election, COPE's Bill Bargeman, Alvin Singh and Anita Romaniuk were the only COPE members' of the slate not to be elected, while councilor David Cadman, school trustees Alan Wong, Alan Blakely, and parks commissioner Loretta Woodcock were re-elected, with the addition of former councilor Ellen Woodsworth and former school trustee Jane Bouey. COPE was 6 for 9.
Vision went 15 for 16, with all candidates elected except for councilor candidate Kashmir Dhaliwal.
To capture the public's imagination, Stuart was the only candidate seen in a kilt during campaigning.
Stuart knocks on doors and delivers pamphlets – photo courtesty S. Mackinnon.
Stuart wore his “full dress” formal outfit to the Vision Vancouver dinner at Floata Restaurant: Todd Wong, Sharon Gregson (Vision candidate for School Board), Stuart Mackinnon.Stuart is an avid participant on the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team and Kilts Night. He also is the teacher sponsor for the Killarney Cougar Dragons junior dragon boat team. Stuart was featured in the German public television program “From Toronto to Vancovuer by Train” with the Gung Haggis dragon boat team. He has appeared many times in pictures and articles on www.gunghaggisfatchoy.com.