Ray Cowell drops out of the race in City of Cold Lake election

One candidate in the City of Cold Lake election has dropped out of the race.

Ray Cowell has withdrawn his nomination for councillor.

“It is with much regret that I am withdrawing my nomination for my Cold Lake City Council Candidacy,” Cowell said. “Though I wish to not comment on the circumstances of my withdrawal, I want to emphasize how excited I was to enter this election and possibly represent this amazing community.”

Cowell says this election was important to him for many different reasons.

“As a long-standing community member, a serving military member, a business owner and being married to someone in the Alberta energy sector, I felt and continue to feel I would have had the best ability to resonate with various stakeholders in these and other fields,” Cowell said. “Further, Covid-19 has had an immeasurable impact on our community, and my platform being business oriented had hoped to support and sustain small business during and post-Covid, incentivize new business while emphasizing crime reduction.”

Cowell says, “It was a pleasure during my short candidacy to meet with many of you while riding the Cold Lake City Transit, at the marina and on the streets. It was moving to hear personal stories going door-to-door about what made our community great! And it was humbling to see my signs within our community while coming up with creative social marketing platforms and networking opportunities for my campaign.”

“I do not see this as a loss, but an opportunity,” Cowell said. “The opportunity to speak about issues, to take-action and most important, impact our very own community. Best wishes to all the candidates in the upcoming election. Thank-you to my beautiful wife Melanie and my daughter Cadence for their support in me. Thank you to my mentors and supporters. And thank you to all of you who make our community a place I want to continue to serve in.”