Ross Siemens is the first person to enter the mayoral race in the 2022 City of Abbotsford municipal election.
The current councillor made the announcement on Monday (June 27) of his intention to run.
Siemens has served as a councillor since 2014 and had two additional terms in the role when he was younger. He was the youngest councillor to be elected in Abbotsford’s history.
He collected 14,872 votes in the 2018 election and placed sixth among all councillor candidates. Siemens earned 11,255 votes and placed fourth in the 2014 election.
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He stated in a press release that he is excited to enter the race.
“I believe in a vision for Abbotsford that will see it continue to grow as the economic and cultural hub of the Fraser Valley,” he stated. “I am proud of all that my colleagues and I have accomplished over the past eight years. However, there is still more work to be done.
“The increase in rents and housing prices has left owning or renting a home out of reach for too many in our community. Tackling the full spectrum of issues surrounding homelessness is going to take creative solutions and collaboration with all levels of government. We are still rebuilding from the 2021 floods and need to build our infrastructure to prevent this from happening again.”
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Siemens has owned and operated Hub Motor Service (Siemens Garage Ltd.) in downtown Abbotsford since 1994. The business was established in 1954 by his grandparents, Peter and Mary Siemens, who were refugees of Mennonite origin that immigrated to Canada during the Russian communist revolution.
He also announced that he will be stepping away from the AbbotsfordFirst slate, which he has been a part of since 2014. He noted that the slate does not run mayoral candidates and he will be an independent in the upcoming election.
The AbbotsfordFirst slate currently consists of councillors Kelly Chahal and Sandy Blue, both of whom have yet to announce if they intend to run again. Couns. Dave Sidhu and Brenda Falk ran as part of the slate in 2018, but both are no longer associated with the group.
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The municipal election is set for Oct. 15.