Here lies the political career of Shari Green, in ruins less than seven years after it began with so much promise.
In 2008, she placed second to Brian Skakun in the council vote, her 9,469 votes just 201 behind the ever-popular Skakun. Voters loved the idea of a local-girl-done-good, the educated owner of a downtown small business loaded with ideas grounded in common sense.
Today, she's finished, a deeply unpopular one-term mayor who didn't dare run for re-election and couldn't win a three-person race for the Conservative nomination in Cariboo-Prince George against two lesser-known and less-well-connected candidates.
What follows is not an attack on Shari Green the person but a condemnation of Shari Green the politician. One of the reasons that distinction needs to be made clear is that Green never seemed to grasp the distinction between the two. To disagree with her politically was, more often than not, interpreted as a personal attack and she never seemed to forgive or forget the slights, real or imagined, large or small.
Her conduct with the local news media is a good example. She froze out Ben Meisner during her entire three-year term as mayor, sniffing that 250News was merely a "blog" unworthy of her time.
At least Green was consistent - her personal feelings defined her politics.
In the summer of 2011, with a municipal election months away, she tried an end run around Rogers to have a brand-new arena built to replace Kin 1. Never mind that the new rink would have cost millions more than renovating Kin 1 or that a new facility likely wouldn't be ready in time for the 2015 Canada Winter Games. Green humiliated Rogers in front of local hockey groups.
In the short term, Rogers got the last laugh, forcing a second vote on the matter. The two councillors absent from the first vote sided with Rogers and he convinced two more to change their votes but voters then bounced Rogers in favor of Green that fall.
Green's term as mayor was rocky from the start. She championed a core services review, which was a disaster from start to finish, made even worse by her own mishandling of it. By the time that fiasco came to a merciful end, councillors were thwarting her, at the council table and behind the scenes, much the same way she did to Rogers. A bid for a second term as mayor was hopeless and then she saw the opportunity to replace retiring Conservative MP Dick Harris in the riding of Cariboo-Prince George.
The problem is that Green burned so many bridges so quickly during her six years on city council that she didn't have a prayer to win the nomination. She had infuriated too many people willing to give her a chance and she had disappointed and disregarded too many who had thrown their support behind her for councillor and mayor. Her reputation preceded her, driving away regional support from card-carrying Conservatives for her candidacy.
Her short political career is a parable of how not to succeed in politics. Once in power, savvy politicians keep campaigning, solidifying their support and looking for ways to expand it. Once in power, Green's autocratic style eroded her base and alienated all but her most loyal of supporters.
Her political passing is also a warning for politicians of how fickle voters can be and how quickly their support can vanish. Like many flash-in-the-pan politicians before her, she probably misinterpreted her victories, particularly her 2011 mayoral win, as a personal endorsement for her, rather than as a rejection of her predecessor. Todd Doherty, who defeated her to win the Conservative nomination, would be wise to remind himself constantly that he owes part of his victory to votes cast for him by anti-Green party members.
Green had so much potential and so much to offer in public life. Sadly, her political service and her one tumultuous term as mayor will be remembered for the inability to deliver on her potential and her promises.
