Last time Ottawa went to the municipal polls three years ago, no current councillors were outsted from their positions. One Ottawa group says it hopes to change that in the upcoming elections this November.

The advocacy group, dubbed "FairChance2010", aims to encourage ordinary citizens to run for city council. Executive members include:

  • Former mayor Jackie Holzman;
  • Chris Carruthers, former chief of the Ottawa Hospital;
  • Jean-Jacques Blais, a former Liberal cabinet minister and now board chair at the Ottawa Heart Institute.

"I think it's a question of trying to get more engagement, more participation by the community," Blais told CTV Ottawa.

"At the municipal level, there is a great deal of resistance at the polls. Turnout is very low, and there is a requirement for people to look more at candidacies, participation."

Social media part of push for publicity

The group is just launching its campaign, including groups on Facebook and on Twitter that have attracted only a few followers so far.

Right now, Blair says FairChance is seeking publicity for its cause so people know how to seek them out.

"Effectively, we need to have more traction, more engagement, more attention being paid to municipal politics. And we need to demystify the process."

Other groups also ramp up efforts

FairChance is not alone in looking to create more buzz for the elections. Our Ottawa is also trying to bring up interest.

"We would like to build a vision together that we can have support for," said Jennifer McKenzie, who works on the group.

"That would allow us to make decisions and not reverse them, and backtrack, as the current council has been able to do."

Current councillors say new ideas would be welcome, but caution that competitiors are generally not up to the job and that is why they lose in elections.

"Generally, (competition comes) from people who aren't very experienced in what council has been doing," says Coun. Diane Holmes. "They aren't community-cased people who've been working with councillors."

Mayor race takes lion's share of attention

Thus far, most of the attention paid to Ottawa municipal elections has been at the mayoral level.

Former Liberal MPP Jim Watson stepped down from his position this week to take a run at Ottawa mayor, joining fellow candidates Robert Gauthier and Coun. Alex Cullen.

Incumbent Larry O'Brien says he will make a decision in June about running again.

With a report from CTV Ottawa's Norman Fetterley