THUNDER BAY – Coun. Shelby Ch’ng has announced she will not run for mayor in Thunder Bay’s upcoming municipal election.
The two-term Northwood Ward councillor said she’s focused on other career opportunities, but is still weighing whether to run for one of five at-large councillor positions.
She will not vie for her Northwood seat in the Oct. 24 election, having recently moved to the city’s north end, and ruled out a run in the Current River Ward, where incumbent Andrew Foulds has filed for reelection.
“While I understand the rules don’t preclude people from running in a different ward than they live in, it’s important to me to live in the ward you represent,” she said.
Ch’ng, who defeated incumbent Northwood Coun. Mark Bentz in 2014 and was re-elected in 2018, said she’s considering starting a consulting business with a local partner, a venture that would leave her without enough time to dedicate to the role of mayor.
“Some other opportunities have come up that I’d like to explore, and I think it’s a good time to let people know that I’m not considering a run for mayor,” she said in an interview. “A lot of people have asked, and I think my announcement would signal to other people who might want to run that the seat might be more open than they thought.”
The mayoral field has remained small since incumbent Bill Mauro announced in June he wouldn’t seek a second term.
Three candidates have so far declared for mayor: at-large Coun. Peng You, business owner Gary Mack, and Robert Szczepanski, a municipal employee with Oliver Paipoonge.
Ch’ng said she’s unlikely to offer an endorsement in the race, but is open to speaking with candidates with similar values and hopes to see a diverse slate of candidates including women, members of the LGBTQ community, and racial minorities.
She’s still considering whether to run for an at-large seat, a decision she said she’ll make in the coming weeks (nominations for the municipal election close on Aug. 19).
“I have to figure out where the professional career is going to go, and if it’s prohibitive to run for council or take on another role,” she said.
“I also want to have a bit more of a life balance. I’ve been doing council for eight years, ran my own business for nine [years], and I’m working full-time. There are a lot of demands on my time.”
She said she’d have to weigh those demands, including her current position as education partnership program liaison at Matawa Education and Care Centre, against her passion for public service.
“Coming out of the pandemic, a lot of us are reassessing where we want to spend our time, and having a better work-life balance is part of that," she said. "But I also have a need to serve, and I do love being on council. As tough as it is, and as tough as constituents are on me, that’s part of the job from my [perspective], and I’ve got pretty thick skin. I think I have another term in me, if the cards play out that way.”
Ch’ng, a lifelong Thunder Bay resident and former small business owner, has sought higher office in the past, stepping in for the Liberals in the recent provincial election as a last-minute replacement for Michael Gravelle in the Thunder Bay-Superior North riding before finishing third behind MPP Lise Vaugeois and runner-up PC candidate Peng You.
