Except for one councillor, Salmon Arm voters returned the incumbent politicians to power Saturday night.

Incumbent Mayor Marty Bootsma was re-elected with 1,792 votes, second was Charles Nash with 1,488, third was incumbent councillor Marg Kentel with 1,378 and next was Nancy Cooper with 1,089.

Topping the polls in the council race was Debbie Cannon with 3,306, followed by Kevin Flynn with 3,298, Alan Harrison with 3,222, newcomer Ken Jamieson with 2,850, Chad Eliason with 2,645 and Ivan Idzan with 2,551.

Not elected were Ian Wickett with 2,458, Tim Lavery with 2,243, Jeff Galbraith with 1,608, Wendy Collins with 1,428 and Lynn Cameron with 1,372.

Voter turnout was 47.8 per cent, up from 38.6 in the 2005 election.

Re-elected Mayor Marty Bootsma is pleased but not surprised that he retained the mayor’s chair.

“Nobody goes into an election expecting to lose,” he told the Observer Saturday night following his win, his home crowded with upbeat supporters.

“Philosophically, me, Coun. Kentel and Nancy Cooper probably weren’t that far apart. So while I don’t want to thank them for stealing my votes, I do want to thank them for their part in stimulating community awareness.”

Regarding SmartCentres and the fact that the new council remains split on the issue, he remarked: “Coun. Flynn and Coun. Cannon are very much obviously in favour and they did lead the polls. The other councillors who opposed, although they did get elected, they finished up closer to the back end of the polls. I am very happy that all the incumbents were elected. They’ve been great to work with and I think they still will be. And I’d like to welcome Ken Jamieson. I voted for  him.”

Asked about his plans in the upcoming term, Bootsma said: “The SmartCentres thing is going to be in the forefront and we do have staff coming back with the process and budget implications for a plebiscite. I hope council will confirm this is something that should be done. I think everybody realizes it would be non-binding but any council would be hard-pressed to ignore the results.”

Regarding this election perhaps being akin to a vote on SmartCentres, Bootsma said that, in one way, it was like a plebiscite.

“On the other hand, many, including myself... see the past three years as good years, and I think the community has appreciated that. I think for many voters it was not a one-issue election. I don’t think we should take it for granted that the vote means any particular thing.”

Coun. Marg Kentel stared intently at the results on the election board at the SASCU Recreation Centre Saturday night. The tally of votes for the mayoralty race put her in third place, and marked an end to the political career of Salmon Arm’s longest-serving woman on city council.

Kentel received hugs from family members and supporters, but her eyes never left the board.

“Those are the breaks,” she remarked.

Kentel said she was focused on what she was doing during the election, and wasn't sure what to say.

“You go into it thinking you’re going to win... having that thought in your mind.”

Kentel said the community has spoken, and she is proud of what she has contributed. She said her favourite part of being involved in city politics was being part of moving the community forward.

Kentel said there is a lot of work to be done, she loves Salmon Arm, and she will continue to serve the community.

“I’ll contribute in some other way.”

Down but not out was the message Charles Nash handed to supporters, who filled the Downtown Activity Centre library Saturday night.

“This is sad news, but that’s democracy in action,” he said after campaign manager Greg Husband posted the numbers in the municipal election. “We’re not done with this by any means. You’ll see me again in three years.”

Following his speech, Nash praised Mayor Marty Bootsma for his campaign.

“He ran a good above-board campaign as did I,” he said, wishing Bootsma well in the next three years. “I hope he has an open door policy because I will be chatting with him in the near future about the benefits of Smart Growth principles.”

Also offering congratulations, mayoral candidate Nancy Cooper says she won’t be back in the next race.

“I have a job, so I just keep working that’s all,” she said Saturday night. “I would have loved to have been mayor, I would have given it 100 per cent, but I love my job.”

Pleased with the voter turn-out, Cooper says she believes there was a message in the numbers.

“I think the community really spoke up. If you add up the numbers, mine Marg's and Marty’s, I think people spoke up for SmartCentres,” she said. “They came out and they let it be known, versus one person who said he wasn’t for it. I think they spoke loudly.”

Coun. Debbie Cannon said the election was highly impacted by the recent decision on the SmartCentres development.

“I think a lot of it came down to the one issue.”

She said the town spoke out, and a large portion of the vote along with high voting numbers could be attributed to the SmartCentres issue.

“My phone rang off the hook constantly.”

She said mayoral candidates in support of the development received more votes than the mayoral candidate who was against it.

“Those numbers have to mean something too.”

Cannon said she wants to move forward with development in the community, and notes that it will likely slow down with the downturn in the economy.

Coun. Kevin Flynn said the election was more a one-issue election than he would like. He said the community was very engaged.

“It was the highest voter turnout we’ve had.”

Flynn said the vote showed the community is relatively happy with the job being done by the existing council. He noted the vote also showed there is a silent majority that clearly supported himself and Cannon.

Flynn said he is looking forward to having the underpass at 21st Street and the Trans-Canada Highway completed, and asking the community for their input in a plebiscite. He added that it should not just be on the SmartCentres question, but he would like to include the city’s solid waste plan and possibly water metering, or an underpass to the waterfront.

Coun. Chad Eliason said he thinks voters respected that the existing council worked hard, and considered what had been done over the past three years. He said the new council would be dealing with some of the same issues.

“We’re going to deal with a SmartCentres proposal again, we’re going to deal with recycling.”

Eliason said the next year will see the completion of the water treatment plant, the biggest capital project ever done in the city.

“We have a busy three years ahead of us; I’m glad that it’s an experienced council that’s going to be doing it.”

Coun. Ivan Idzan said he is pleased to be re-elected, and he knew that those who had spoken either for or against SmartCentres would rise to the top of the vote.

He noted Cannon and Flynn received the heavier vote than those who were more moderate.

“I didn’t particularly advocate for or against.”

Idzan said he has generally taken a moderate approach, noting there are merits to any given argument.

“I’m the type of person to weigh them and get a balanced approach.”

Idzan said the council will do its best to represent all of the community.

He said he is looking forward to pursuing an official community plan review, depending on whether residents will accept the costs.

“The cost depends on how much we try to review.”

Idzan said he wants to see the 21st Street underpass complete as well because the project is largely on its way, with provincial funding for part of the project already in place.

“Now it’s really just getting the community to pay for the rest.”

Councillor-elect Ken Jamieson said his first move is to get to know the other councillors on a personal and professional level. He said he sees the council as a new administration, and not a continuation of what came before.

“There might be new and better ways of doing things.”

Jamieson said balancing his teaching profession with council duties will be his first major challenge.

“For me, the nature of my job, and the nature of a lot of people’s jobs, if there’s not some flexibility on scheduling meetings – a lot of people are excluded from running for council and serving.”

Coun. Alan Harrison said he feels really good about the election and the council that was elected. He said the community is well-represented.

“The OCP review is probably the most important piece of business.”

Harrison said council will be trying to come to a resolution on the shopping needs of residents, a solution that will be acceptable to all of the parties involved.