Another Lloydminster resident has announced his intentions to run in the municipal elections next month.
Yesterday, Aaron Buckingham announced that he is running for a seat on council. Buckingham has lived in the border city for the past 20 years, and has spent his time here getting involved with numerous local boards and committees.
“I’ve been a resident of this city for just shy of 20 years now. I came here on a 3-month practicum and 20 years later I’m still here. I fell in love with the city when I first came, and tried to get as involved as I possibly could in things from being the president of the Border City Rotary Club, to being the president of the Chamber, to serving on lots of volunteer boards, coaching sports, being a Captain on a local fire department,” says Buckingham.
He currently serves as Captain of the Britannia-Wilton Fire Department as well as a first responder with WPD Ambulance. Buckingham says a key concern for him is better coordination between the municipal government and both provincial governments that impact Lloydminster.
“The political piece between the two provincial government is a huge factor. I haven’t seen, recently, a large number of people coming in from the provincial governments to see Lloydminster, and if they don’t see things that we need here, they’re never going to throw funding at us or help us. So that intergovernmental relations piece is something that I’m passionate about and hope that I can lend my voice to.”
Currently, Buckingham says he doesn’t have concrete plans in terms of campaigning yet, but wants to hear from Lloydminster voters. One thing that Buckingham did speak on, in terms of his goals if elected, was what he called “long-term growth.”
“I want our children, no matter what income bracket you fall into, to graduate high school in Lloydminster, and to really strongly consider staying. We need to have reasons for them to stay, we need to be a growing, vibrant community, and I want that opportunity for everyone.”
Election day is Wednesday, October 26, 2016.