Lyndie Nickel Wins Village of Ryley By-election

Lyndie Nickel Wins Village of Ryley By-election

Michelle Pinon - News Advertiser

A total of 177 ballots were cast during the Jan. 13 by-election with candidate Lyndie Nickel receiving 166 votes and candidate Joshua Lee receiving 11 votes. Those are unofficial election results and Returning Officer Jaye Parrent said they will become official on Jan. 19.

Resident Bethany Bekolay commented after she voted, stating that she hoped Lyndie Nickel would win the by-election and begin to affect positive change in the community. “It was important to come out today because there’s been a lot of negativity surrounding our council and our mayor lately. The entire village, including myself has not been happy with the events that have unfolded lately, and there needs to be a positive change for our residents to feel like they can trust our council and our mayor again.”

Nickel commented following the by-election by stating, “I want to say first and foremost, thank you to all the residents of Ryley for supporting me with such overwhelming results. I hear your voice telling me that I have a lot of work to do, working with you to rebuild our community with council, building transparency, and building respect across Ryley, inside and outside the municipal office.

Village of Ryley administration office where voting took place on Jan. 13.

(Michelle Pinon/Photo)

She also commented Councillor Brian Ducherer for “being transparent and showing such leadership this last week. I am looking forward to working with you and other councillors to build a strong team that our residents can be proud to work with and a team that they can trust and rely on.”

She also gave a shout out to her opponent Joshua Lee for running for council. “I agree with the person who posted on Ryley Today earlier this week, that there are no losers in this by-election, just a first and second place. It’s great to see such a young candidate from Ryley showing interest in local politics.

I truly believe that the time is poor for you right now because you are so young and Ryley needs someone like me who is more experience at this time. I encourage you to run in the next general election in October 2025. We always need new blood and new ideas.

Nickel also wanted to recognize Returning Officer Jaye Parrent for running a smooth election and her team who have supported and encouraged her during her campaign. She added, “Let’s get rebuilding our Ryley, the Ryley that cares for each other, supports each other and has fun together. I’m looking forward to it.”