Shirley Timm-Rudolph

Timm-Rudolph was raised in north-end Winnipeg, and was an interior designer before entering public life. She became a salesperson after leaving council in 1992,[1] and established a consulting business in 2002. In 2004, she organized the charity Gold Spike Golf Tournament.[2]

Timm-Rudolph first ran for Winnipeg City Council in the 1983 municipal election as a New Democrat in the Springfield Heights division, and narrowly lost to Jim Ragsdill. She ran again in 1986 as an independent, and was elected in a crowded field . She ran for the Canadian House of Commons in 1988 as a Liberal, and finished second against New Democratic Party incumbent Bill Blaikie in Winnipeg—Transcona.

Re-elected to a second term in 1989, Timm-Rudolph lost to fellow councillor Rick Boychuk in 1992 after redistribution forced the two incumbents to face one another. The 1992 contest was marked by extreme bitterness, with Boychuk accusing Timm-Rudolph of being in a conflict of interest situation. She was later cleared by a provincial investigation.[3]

Timm-Rudolph served on the provincial Municipal Board after her 1992 defeat.[4] She ran for re-election in 1995, and defeated Boychuk in a rematch. During this campaign, she proposed the creation of an auxiliary police force that would take care of simple tasks and allow officers to focus on more important matters.[5] When asked about her political ideology, she responded "dead centre".[6] A subsequent survey of voting patterns in early 1997 found her to be one of council's most independent members, voting with or against Mayor Susan Thompson's governing coalition depending on the issue.[7]

Thompson appointed Timm-Rudolph as acting deputy mayor in November 1995,[8] and named her to the executive policy committee (i.e. the municipal cabinet) in March 1997. She was initially the chair of the planning and services committee,[9] and was reassigned as chair of the public works committee in November 1997.[10] She voted against a bus fare reduction in 1998, arguing that it would lead to higher property taxes.[11]

Timm-Rudolph was expected to face a difficult re-election contest in 1998, but instead won without difficulty after Russ Wyatt, her main opponent, decided to withdraw at the last minute.[12] After the election, she became a prominent figure in the council's unofficial opposition to new mayor Glen Murray.[13] She served on the board of the Winnipeg Convention Centre and remained a member of the public works committee, but was no longer its chair.[14] Timm-Rudolph also served on several national boards in this period, including those of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and the Yellowhead Highway.[15] She was a critic of Winnipeg's restrictive anti-smoking legislation, and was one of only two councillors to vote against the 2001 operating budget.[16]

Timm-Rudolph decided not to seek re-election in 2002, saying that she found it difficult to work with Glen Murray. She indicated that she wanted to start a consulting business and write children's books.[17] She later said that her greatest accomplishment in office was facilitating the construction of a storm water retention basin in southeast Transcona, an area often plagued by flooding.[18]

Timm-Rudolph was one of the first declared candidates for a 2004 mayoral by-election, which was called after Murray resigned to run for the House of Commons. She was initially considered a viable candidate, but did not establish a strong campaign organization.[19] She finished a distant seventh against Sam Katz.[20]