Debbie Wiggins-Colwell says Tantramar vote shows residents want change
Debbie Wiggins-Colwell has been elected mayor of Tantramar, defeating Sabine Dietz and Terry Jones in Monday’s municipal election.
Wiggins-Colwell won with 1,582 votes. Dietz finished with 910, while Jones received 378. The result puts Wiggins-Colwell at the head of a new Tantramar council that includes a mix of returning councillors and first-time members.
A long history in Dorchester and Tantramar
Wiggins-Colwell is not new to municipal politics. She most recently served as Tantramar’s deputy mayor and Ward 1 councillor after municipal reform brought Sackville, Dorchester and surrounding local service districts into the municipality of Tantramar. Before amalgamation, she had served as mayor of Dorchester, where she was also the village’s first female mayor.
Her ties to Dorchester go back decades. According to her municipal biography, Wiggins-Colwell was born in Sackville and moved to Dorchester in 1972, where she raised a family of three. She owned and operated two businesses in Dorchester before retiring in 2018. She has also been involved in autism awareness and community advocacy work. In 2019, she received the Molly Kool Award for community contributions and volunteerism, including her role as co-founder of the Greater Dorchester Moving Forward Cooperative.
Focus on transparency and spending
In an interview with CHMA the day after the election, Wiggins-Colwell said she sees the result as a sign residents want change.
“I think there’s a change, they want to see a change, and I’m just really hoping, and I’m gonna work really hard to make that change happen.”
Wiggins-Colwell said she wants to focus on transparency, making things more open, and looking more closely at internal municipal spending. She said residents want to know where their tax dollars are going, particularly around services, infrastructure, safety, hospitals and “putting the firefighters back on the ground.”
Communication with council and residents
Wiggins-Colwell also said communication between administration, the CAO and council needs to improve.
“With a new council coming, we really have to make sure that it’s transparent between the administration and the CAO and the council,” she said. “We have to know what’s going on.”
She said councillors should not be hearing about issues only when they come forward for a decision. Wiggins-Colwell said council members need time to think, discuss, research and understand what is being proposed before voting.
Rural services raised at the door
During the campaign, Wiggins-Colwell said she spent time in local service district areas, where taxes and services were a major concern.
She said residents in rural areas raised concerns about police presence, especially in more isolated areas.
“What they’re concerned most about is, well, taxes are being one thing, but having the presence of police service in these rural areas.”
Wiggins-Colwell said she would like to speak with law enforcement about what can be done, including whether officers could travel through rural areas more regularly so residents know they are being protected.
A changed council table
The election also brought changes around the council table.
According to CHMA’s election results, Alyssa Greene was elected in Ward 1 with 128 votes. Barry Hicks was re-elected in Ward 2 with 165 votes. In Ward 3, voters elected Tori Weldon, Josh Goguen, Haidee Robertson and Allison Butcher. Kristen LeBlanc was acclaimed in Ward 4. Wayne Wells was elected in Ward 5 with 93 votes.
Wiggins-Colwell said she is looking forward to working with the incoming council and getting to know where each elected official stands in the community.
“It’s going to be great to get to know them and know where they stand in the community. It’s gonna be exciting.”
Today is declaration day in New Brunswick after elections. CHMA will continue following Tantramar’s new council as the next term begins.
Clinton Davis is a community journalist and audio producer covering the people, events, and ideas shaping the Tantramar region.
