By Jennifer Liu

On Monday night Shawn Menard unseated two-term veteran David Chernushenko in Ottawa’s Capital Ward. It was one of three upsets in Ottawa’s municipal election on Oct. 22, 2018.

In his victory speech, Menard reaffirmed his pledges to bring student-friendly changes to Ottawa City Council. He said that once he begins his mandate on Dec. 1, he will push for 1,000 affordable housing units to open up each year and for free public transportation on OC Transpo.

In an interview with Capital Current, Menard explained that he holds close connections to Carleton University, which is a part of Capital Ward: He holds an M.A. in Public Administration and served on the university’s Graduate Students’ Association. He was a proponent of the U-Pass campaign ten years ago.

Below are photos from Menard’s victory party at Banditos on Bank Street in the Glebe.

Councillor-elect Shawn Menard takes a selfie with a supporter. Menard beat incumbent David Chernushenko in Capital Ward on Oct. 22, 2018. [Photo © Jennifer Liu]
“Our city council needs all of us to be there, to fight for those less fortunate, to fight for those folks who don’t have as much,” said Shawn Menard on Oct. 22, 2018. [Photo © Jennifer Liu]
Menard supporters watch him speak after his election victory at Banditos. [Photo © Jennifer Liu]
“This is about a model of organizing that a lot of people underestimate,” said NDP MPP Joel Harden (Ottawa Centre) about Shawn Menard’s campaign for Ottawa city council. “This is about face-to-face, grassroots work, and it’s not about big money, it’s about big ideas.” [Photo © Jennifer Liu]
“We cannot let them down over the next four years,” said Capital Ward councillor-elect Shawn Menard on Oct. 22. Menard told supporters he would be the voice for Ottawans who are less fortunate. “That’s why I got into this in the first place.” [Photo © Jennifer Liu]
The only sign of Shawn Menard’s post-campaign party at Banditos on Bank Street in the Glebe on election night was this converted bike. [Photo © Jennifer Liu]

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