The AMM conference in Brandon last month included a session on women in politics and the head of council for Boissevain-Morton said it was informative.

Judy Swanson hopes more women have their name on the ballots this fall for the civic elections in Manitoba.

“It was a really good AMM gathering partly because it was our first gathering with other municipalities in the past two years. Have virtual meetings all you want but it’s just not the same as sitting down face to face for discussions.”

Swanson said a highlight for her was a session called “Women in Politics” and it included Manitoba’s Premier. “They had a breakfast and Premier Heather Stefanson was one of the guest speakers at it and people from all levels of government talked about the need to get more young people and women into politics.

Municipal elections will be held this October and Swanson hopes more women find a spot around the council tables in the province.

“I think there’s going to be lots of turn over this fall and there are lot of amazing people, and it’s not just about gender, but it’s really nice to see young people and young women in particular so we may have to look at things like what time of day to hold meetings. Some municipalities are even looking at how can we manage daycare.”

“There are things we need to look at to enable young women to come and be a part of making decisions for their community” said Judy Swanson.