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2010 has arrived and it looks like the race is on for Milton’s eight Town Council positions spread across it’s recently realigned 8 Wards.

Zeeshan Hamid started things off on January 4th by announcing his intention to run in Ward 8 on the Hawthorne Villager forums as well as his own blog and newly formed campaign page.

From his post January 4th on the Hawthorne Villager Forums:

It should come as no surprise to regular readers of villager that I have decided to enter the race for the Local council for Ward 8.

I am not going to make vague and ambiguous promises. I am not promising to change the world, bring about world peace, end world hunger or to teach every bad driver how to drive. However, I do unconditionally promise to be accessible, transparent and representative (full commitment).

A councillor is supposed to listen to his or her constituents and represent their interests in the Council. Those who know me know that I can do that very well.

I want to improve the quality of our lives, and those of our children (“our” = residents of Milton). You can get highlights on my campaign page (or drill in deeper to get a whole lot of details).

If you support me then perhaps you’ll considering fanning me on facebook to show support and making a little campaign donation. Every bit helps.

Zeeshan Hamid
Ward 8 Candidate for the Local Council

Announcing his candidacy was the worst-kept secret in town to those who regularly read the aforementioned forums, of which Zeeshan is both a frequent and much-appreciated contributor. His blog has become a must-read and you have to commend his passion for the community and for transparency and accountability in government. MiltonSearch.com would like to wish him the best of luck come election time this October 25.

It also came as no surprise later in the day when on the same venue, current Local and Regional Councillor Colin Best announced his intention to throw his hat back into the ring in 2010.

I want to let everyone on the hawthornevillager know that I have registered my candidacy for re-election and filed my nomination papers for the office of Local & Regional Councillor in the new ward 2,3,4,5 north of Derry road.

I congratulate all those who have registered today and encourage all Milton residents to become involved in this first election with eight local wards and two new regional wards.

Will be posting further information on my campaign and position on issues through my web site and blog at www.colinbest.ca.

Looking forward to talking with all the residents in the ward during the campaign and working for all the residents of Milton.

Colin Best
Local & regional councillor
Milton/Halton
www.colinbest.ca

Again, Colin is constantly connected to the community as a whole through his website and the local forums and has been über-responsive to all kinds of requests for information and updates on all things Milton for years now.

And just today, while perusing the world of Twitter, we stumbled across Jennifer Smith’s Twitter page.

On January 4th she posted the following:

is deciding whether to submit my nomination papers today, or wait a few weeks and keep ‘em guessing #miltonvote

Followed up yesterday by confirming her intentions:

just submitted my nomination papers. I am officially a candidate for Milton Town Councillor, Ward 2! #miltonvote

Smith’s blog Sprawlville: The quest for sustainability in Canada’s Fastest Growing Town is another essential read and we wish her luck as well in her campaign for office in 2010.

And so it begins. The next 10 months should be interesting in Milton with some fresh blood vying for a spot on our Local Council and no shortage of hot button topics in and around town. We’ll do our part to try to bring awareness of some of the issues facing Milton and how some of the candidates plan to tackle things.

As is has been over the past several years, we’re in a very important time in the history of this town we all call home. It’s time for everyone to get more involved so we can shape Milton’s future together.

After a poor voter turnout for the Municipal Elections in 2006, I think we can agree that the most important thing we can all do is educate ourselves, get to know the candidates and get out and vote come October!

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