Turnover a key theme in East Kootenay local elections

Turnover a key theme in East Kootenay local elections

Published 12:29 pm Tuesday, October 20, 2026

The winds of change blew through the East Kootenay this weekend, as voters went to the polls and elected a number of fresh faces to city hall in municipalities across the region.

The implications — particularly to the Regional District of East Kootenay and the Kootenay East Regional Hospital District — will be massive.

To recap some basic local governance background, the RDEK manages the same types of issues that a municipal city council does, except it is done through a regional context.

The RDEK board is made up of 15 directors which typically include the eight elected mayors from Kimberley, Fernie, Sparwood, Elkford, Invermere, Canal Flats, Radium Hot Springs, and Cranbrook, although Cranbrook gets two seats at the RDEK table due to population density.

Cranbrook city council will vote on which city councillor will occupy that second seat alongside the mayor.

The other six RDEK board of director seats are earmarked for elected officials to represent rural residents in six rural areas outside of official municipal boundaries around the region.

• In the Elk Valley rural areas — Area A

• In the South Country such as Jaffray/Baynes Lake — Area B

• In the rural areas around Cranbrook, such as Moyie, Gold Creek and Wycliffe — Area C

• In the rural ares around Kimberley such as Wasa, Meadowbrook, St Mary’s Lake — Area E

• In Fairmont Hot Springs and the rural areas around Invermere — Area F

• In the rural areas around Radium Hot Springs and Edgewater — Area G

So, to the regional mayoral and electoral area director results:

Cranbrook: Tom Shypitka

Kimberley: Matt Mosteller

Fernie: Harshan Ramadass

Sparwood: Hadden J Kelloway

Elkford: Mandy McGregor

Canal Flats: Maddi Taylor

Invermere: Al Miller

Radium Hot Springs: Cris A Leonard

Area A: Thomas McDonald

Area B: Krista Damstrom

Area C: Samantha Walsh

Area E: Nowell Berg

Area F: Susan Clovechok

Area G: Roberta Schnider

With the results in mind, there are some interesting races to break down.

First, the acclimations.

McDonald, Damstrom, Walsh, Schnider, and Miller all ran unopposed to their respective offices.

There were some close finishes around the region, namely with the election of Leonard in Radium Hot Springs, who ran against incumbent Mike Gray and won by seven votes.

Seven votes was also the gap between incumbent Clovechok’s successful bid and her opponent in Area F.

Those ballot counts are based off preliminary results and won’t be official until certification on Oct. 21.

In Cranbrook, Wayne Price successfully ran for a seat on city council after serving the last four years as mayor.

There was a lot of turnover in municipalities across the region, with new mayors across the board except for Invermere, with Miller acclaimed. Four newly elected mayors haven’t served in local government office before.

Meanwhile, the Kotoenay East Regional Hospital District will be made up of all the same elected officials represented at the RDEK, however, the hospital board jurisdiction is slightly larger and includes Creston, rural parts of the West Kootenay, and Golden.

Representatives from those expanded areas will join the board for those meetings, which occur quarterly throughout the year.

Typically, hospital boards fund projects through property taxation across the region at up to a 40 per cent cost-share with the province, which provides the other 60 per cent. Other organizations, such as the East Kootenay Foundation for Health, also fundraises and coordinates financial support for major projects and initiatives.

The hospital board is responsible for overseeing and funding capital health care infrastructure and major equipment purchases in the region, such as the $232 million expansion of the F.W. Green Memorial Home in Cranbrook, which will see 150 beds at full build out by 2030.

In this specific case, the hospital board is providing around $92 million in funding, while the province is contributing the remaining funds.

Also in Cranbrook, the status of the renal and oncology expansion remains in stasis after the province agreed to amend the business case to add a third floor after local officials lobbied for it. Initially, it was approved for two floors last year with a $59 million budget.

That project, which is now expected to cost over $100 million due to construction-related inflation pressures and the addition of the third floor, is currently awaiting approval from the provincial treasury board, however, that process is on hold amid the provincial election campaign.