Thank You Ward Karhiio!

We’ve made history together!

Click here to watch a video of Keren addressing her volunteers and supporters on election night. This blog post is a loose transcript of this speech.

Over 7,400 votes. WE DID IT!

I am honoured to be your councillor-elect for Ward Karhiio.

We are all here because we know that politics can be good, that our political leaders, elections, and our campaigns can embody the best of us, and that we can build a local movement from the ground-up that’s anchored in the community. I have always believed that positive, strength-based campaigns ultimately prevail, and today I am proud to have earned Ward Karhiio’s councillor seat using that approach.

And so my friends, this victory is yours, this victory is ours. We've made history together. Here are some highlights from the last year of campaigning:

• Believe it or not, this campaign began the day after the 2017 election. Our small team has never really stopped. We focused our energy on building relationships and connections, and forming a team that truly has become the envy of this election cycle. 

• Yesterday, we ended our non-stop canvassing trek in Summerside. It felt fitting considering that that was where we started on October 31, 2020 with our first literature drop. We’ve been steady ever since. Many of my volunteers have been with the campaign team since this time.

• Last November was when we had our very first virtual conversation with residents in Ward Karhiio, kicking off a series of these as well as countless online coffees, in-person coffees, phone calls, and meetings that ultimately shaped a platform I am extremely proud of. 

• We’ve answered every question, every email, voicemail, and practically every survey and we treated each with thoughtfulness, analysis, and integrity. 

• Donations came in steadily from Edmontonians throughout the campaign. You gave, generously, without hesitation, and helped us reach every fundraising milestone so that we could run a fiscally responsible campaign that sought out local businesses and maximized every dollar. 

• The stories and people I met at the doors stay with me and make me a better person. 

• I’ve made genuine friends and family along the way. We lift each other up.

I’m Ready to Get to Work

I’m excited to get to work. This is an incredible ward that I’ve gotten to know intimately in this past year. Now I’m ready to roll up my sleeves, to govern, to lead, and to be your champion and implement the policies and initiatives that YOU voted me in on. 

This is a platform I am extremely proud of — 3 pillars, 11 priorities, 37 points, based on:

• Community: build community based on local expertise, working with you so we can all live in vibrant and inclusive neighbourhoods.

• Economy: enable a strong and diverse local economy so you can easily start and grow your business in Edmonton.

• Climate: bring forward local solutions to climate change so we can all benefit from a healthy and resilient environment for generations to come.

Community. Economy. Climate. A concrete and bold vision co-created through countless conversations with residents, business, community, and industry leaders. Through it all, we remained authentic and true to what we heard and my own lived experiences.  

As you all know, Ward Karhiio is a rectangle, separated north and south by the Anthony Henday. While there are unique issues on both sides such as infrastructure and renewal in the mature neighbourhoods of Mill Woods, and school capacity in the new growth neighbourhoods in the south, there is one common thread that connects the ward north to south, east to west. And that is mobility and transit. 

Speaking with so many of you at the doors has given me incredible clarity about how urgently mobility and transit need to be prioritized due to their effects across the three pillars of community, economy, and climate. While the connections to economy and climate are more obvious, it is important to understand that mobility is an equity issue for people like seniors, students, newcomers, and low income families who do not own cars and therefore do not have the choice to drive. It is also linked to many of the systemic issues that our city faces - homelessness, poverty, addiction, mental health, wellbeing and safety. 

Looking ahead, I know there are many complex challenges that this council will need to tackle. I look forward to applying an intersectional and public health lens to co-create solutions with Edmontonians.

I also want to pledge that I will never stop listening to you. One of the most poignant interactions I had during this campaign was when I met Esther at her door (not her real name). She told me that she was going to vote for me because of my public health background — her family member was dying of COVID-19 at the hospital while we spoke. Esther let me know that he was running out of the ability to fight. I immediately expressed my condolences and commented that election must be the last thing on her mind. But she replied: “No, I’m going to go and vote for you.”

This interaction is a reminder that even in the worst of times, we must see each other and our humanity. We need to always approach policy and decisions using a people-centred approach, even when it comes to the most divisive issues — for instance mask policies and vaccination policies as related to the pandemic — and prioritize trust and relationship building.  

Thank You to Everyone

Finally, a word of thanks to my team. I couldn’t have done any of this without you. I am SO PROUD of everything we have achieved. We are truly one of the best run campaigns in this entire election. Watching this volunteer team storm and form has been really inspiring for me — it will remain one of my favourite “workplaces” of all time. 

I want to give everyone a sense of what it takes to run a campaign — there are all the parts you see, and all the parts you don’t see. I’ve been so lucky to have a team of dedicated volunteers. Behind the scenes they have worked hard to distribute literature and knock on doors, cut maps, analyze voter data, develop key messages and write newsletters, design graphics, manage the campaign office, organize events, run social media, encourage each other (and me), and much more! I also want to acknowledge the wonderful people who donated to my campaign, and who endorsed me wholeheartedly and without hesitation.

Thank you to each and every one of you for supporting this campaign. Every contribution, big or small, was key to our success tonight. I am grateful for you all.

We’ve all accomplished a lot here in spite of all the adversity thrown our way. We’ve given it all we got. We’ve run a campaign in the midst of a 2-year pandemic, and while dealing with changes in our own personal lives. But we showed up in a big way and we made history tonight — a win for representation. We’ve elected the first ever Chinese Canadian to City Council and added yet another female voice to the table. This is only the beginning. I can’t wait to get started.