It wasn't supposed to happen this way for Jim Romane.
Last July the veteran and committed leader of Innisfail announced he wanted a second term as the town's mayor; that he wanted to complete the job he set out to do.
Yes, he is 67 years old but still very much up to the task for fulfilling the mandate he promised Innisfailians when he was first elected mayor in 2010.
But then out of the blue, Coun. Brian Spiller announced last July he was going to face off against him, while at the same time Coun. Jason Heistad immediately declared he was endorsing Spiller.
It then morphed into controversy when Romane reacted with anger and hurt that his leadership was being challenged, and that it all came as a huge surprise. It must have stung like a sudden dagger in the middle of a very dark night.
It certainly puts the notion to bed that small-town politics are boring but the issue here is respect, which Romane did not get.
Spiller of course is well within his right to seek the town's top job. The question is why. Spiller, who did point out he's 14 years younger than Romane, has not yet publicly announced any sort of platform, and he has not given the slightest hint why he thinks Romane's performance warranted a change. So far, we only know he wants to sit in Romane's chair as he can bring a “fresh perspective” for residents to lead the town into the future.
As for Heistad, he says he's endorsing Spiller because of his attention to detail and that he has admirable community leadership qualities. Again, there was no criticism directed towards the incumbent mayor.
This is hardly explosive stuff that makes for huge 120-point headlines. While it is fair comment it should have reached Romane's ears first. The mayor had no idea it was coming.
Added to this is that Innisfail is not a big place. People chat all the time. Rumours are constantly being heard at the coffee shops and spread everywhere. Sooner rather than later they get to the target's ears.
Not this time. Romane was genuinely shocked when he read the newspaper in July. He may even have thought there was a palace coup in the making.
While Spiller and Heistad did not break any electoral rules or guidelines there is common courtesy to consider here; an implied rule that says if you are a prominent citizen – especially a sitting member of town council -- and you have the eye, or are about to support one with ambitions to be mayor – a sit-down beforehand with the incumbent to let him or her know about future intentions is not only courteous, but just a nice sort of thing to do.
In this case it was not done. Right up to last week, before Romane went to Spiller's house to announce he was changing his mind about seeking re-election, neither Spiller nor Heistad ever approached him to offer any explanation why he wasn't given the courtesy of what was in store for the 2013 municipal election campaign.
Since then Romane thought things over and is now bowing out. This is unfortunate. He is a good man, dedicated to the community and deserving of a better way to end his admirable 19-year political career.
Jim Romane deserved better.
