For October 2023, the panel opines on City of Windsor Councillors and grades each one for the 2023 Rose City Politics City Council Report Card.
The panel came up with the following judging criteria and allocated the points as they saw fit. Out of a possible 100 points the breakdown was:
- Communication 7
- Ideas & Innovation 7
- Getting the Votes 7
- Knowledge & Smarts 25
- Political Savvy 7
- Detector 7
- Character & Integrity 26
- Re-electability 7
- Bozo Eruptions 7
Doug Sartori
*points indicated in order of wards
WARD 1 FRED FRANCIS — 64
Councillor Francis has developed significantly since his first term. He is a better communicator and surprisingly independent. If his rumoured run for Mayor in 2026 materializes, he’ll need a broader policy approach than “taxes bad.”
WARD 2 FABIO COSTANTE — 77
Councillor Costante maintains a tight focus on the needs of his ward and respectfully holds administration to account. He should consider using his voice to speak to city-wide issues more often.
WARD 3 RENALDO AGOSTINO — 71
The most pleasant surprise on Council so far. Agostino has a gift for connecting with people, makes a ton of effort in the ward and on social media. Hard not to be impressed by his public demonstration of democratic values and personal integrity around the CTS issue.
WARD 4 MARK MCKENZIE — 51
McKenzie has been savvy enough to recognize the risks associated with winning a squeaker in a big field. He’s worked hard to show his ward he’s willing to go to bat for them. However, he is still finding his way and has a long way to go.
WARD 5 ED SLEIMAN — 50
Sleiman secured significant investments in his ward that have helped revitalize Ford City, and he is well-liked in his ward. His contribution at council is limited this term and he’s quite media-shy.
WARD 6 JO-ANNE GIGNAC — 73
Gignac has decades of governance experience, one of the sharpest minds at city hall and a clear view of her ward’s values and prejudices. She’s formidable and performs capably.
WARD 7 ANGELO MARIGNANI — 59
Marignani is the undisputed champion of perseverance in Windsor politics. He finally won the Ward 7 seat last year, but his first months in office have been quiet. He’s stayed out of trouble, but I’m still waiting for him to make his mark.
WARD 8 GARY KASCHAK — 59
Gary Kaschak has a handle on his ward and an engaging personality. He’s more comfortable in his second term, though his media skills are still developing. Kaschak has the tools to be a strong Councillor if he breaks out of his comfort zone and takes on meatier issues.
WARD 9 KIERAN MCKENZIE — 79
Kieran McKenzie is a leader on Council. A strong communicator with a terrific grasp on city-wide politics as well as his own ward. He is willing to take a principled stand, even when it makes things politically challenging.
WARD 10 JIM MORRISON — 60
Morrison received muted approval from his ward last year. A solid contributor who has taken a stand from time to time, even though there is a unique contribution for an independent-minded, fiscally responsible politician to make, he’s mostly kept his powder dry.
Doug Sartori is a political observer and organizer. When he’s not recording podcasts or getting people out to vote he runs Parallel 42 Systems, a technology consultancy firm in downtown Windsor.
Melinda Munro
*ranked in order of points, from high to low
Listeners to the September 2, 2023 episode of the podcast will recall the debate about what makes a good Councillor. With those criteria in mind, here are my
scores out of 100.
Coming in at 92 POINTS IS WARD 2 COUNCILLOR FABIO COSTANTE. His background as a lawyer gives him an edge on knowledge, as it often does for politicians, but he earned high marks from
me for communications skills and getting the votes on issues that matter, like the CTS, encampments, and the closing of Sandwich Street.
In close second 1 have WARD 9 COUNCILLOR KIERAN MCKENZIE (85) AND WARD 3 COUNCILLOR RENALDO AGOSTINO (80), but for different reasons. They both scored high on communications
and character, but the Ward 9 Councillor edged the downtown booster on political savvy and avoiding bozo eruptions, while I gave Agostino a few more points on innovation and getting the votes.
WARD 6 COUNCILLOR JO-ANNE GIGNAC GETS A SOLID 76 POINTS. She has demonstrated high political savvy and strong electability in her long career at council, nor does she fall victim to bozo eruptions (with one notable, historical exception), but she doesn’t get strong marks for communications, innovation or getting votes when she needs them.
Just behind Gignac, I have WARD 1 COUNCILLOR FRED FRANCIS WITH 59 POINTS. With more than eight years on council, he has the knowledge and political skill and he wins his ward handily, despite a tough competitor in Darcie Renaud. However, he hasn’t demonstrated the
ability to get his issues across the line and is cunently positioning himself in the Rino Bortolin space as the de facto leader of the opposition to the Mayor, a place from which it is regrettably diffIcult to get things done.
WARD 8 GARY KASCHAK SCORED 55 POINTS in my opinion. He recently took some political hits on behalf of the Mayor and Councillor Francis by handling the Roseland Curling file, which eamed him marks in the category of getting votes when needed. But, in his second term on council, he still doesn’t seem to have a strong vision for either his ward or the city.
Just above the pass/fail is WARD 10 COUNCILLOR JIM MORRISON AT 53 POINTS. His weaknesses are in the areas of communications, Innovation and getting votes. He has made some strong and
independent decisions in his five years on council, but not enough to get him higher than halfway.
Also with passing grades at 51 POINTS EACH ARE WARD 4 COUNCILLOR MARK MCKENZIE, WARD 5 COUNCILLOR ED SLEIMAN and WARD 7 COUNCILLOR ANGELO MARIGNANI. Here’s my reasoning: Councillor McKenzie got off on the wrong foot early with his lack of political savvy and
knowledge on the issue of the CTS. He also ran a no-tax increase campaign and yet voted for a tax increase without much explanation. Councillor Sleiman is a very nice man, but a stronger candidate in Ward 5 could achieve greatness, given the momentum on Drouillard Road. I would have liked to score Marignani higher, but he has been all but invisible since winning his seat. Perhaps he is doing great things in his ward, but they are not showing up in council reports, debates or tough decisions. With three years to go, I look forward to the hearing the voice of someone we all hoped would bring great ideas to Council.
WARD 1 FRED FRANCIS – 59
WARD 2 FABIO COSTANTE – 92
WARD 3 RENALDO AGOSTINO – 80
WARD 4 MARK MCKENZIE – 51
WARD 5 ED SLEIMAN – 51
WARD 6 JO-ANNE GIGNANC – 76
WARD 7 ANGELO MARIGNANI – 51
WARD 8 GARY KASCHAK – 55
WARD 9 KIERAN MCKENZIE – 85
WARD 10 JIM MORRISON – 53
Melinda Munro is a Windsor consultant who works with local governments and not for profits on strategy and service excellence.
This article first appeared on Biz X Magazine
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