Waye Mason

Not to be confused with Wayne Mason.
Waye Mason
Mason in 2024
Member of the Halifax Regional Council for Peninsula South - Downtown / Halifax South Downtown
In office
2012–2024
Preceded bySue Uteck
Succeeded byLaura White
Personal details
BornDartmouth, Nova Scotia
Occupation
  • Politician
  • businessman
  • educator
Websitewayemason.ca

Waye Mason is a Canadian businessperson, former politician and educator from Halifax, Nova Scotia. He was a member of the Halifax Regional Council from 2012 to 2024, Deputy Mayor from 2018-2019, and a candidate for Mayor of Halifax in 2024.

Early life and education

Mason was born and raised in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.[1] He has earned a Bachelor of Arts from Dalhousie University and a Master of Business Administration from Saint Mary's University.[2]

Career

Musical career

Mason's involvement in the music industry began when he became a campus community radio volunteer at CKDU,[3] the radio station of Dalhousie University.[4] He was also chair of the Dalhousie Student Union (DSU).[5]

In 1993, Mason founded the record label and record distributor No Records.[6]

In 2001, Mason founded the not-for-profit Halifax Pop Explosion Association to operate the Halifax Pop Explosion festival.[7] He was executive director of Halifax Pop Explosion until 2010.[3]

From 2007 to 2012, he taught music business and entrepreneurship at the Nova Scotia Community College.[2]

Mason has served as a president and board member of Music Nova Scotia, where he successfully lobbied for the 2002 Music Sector Strategy to drive government investment in the Nova Scotia music industry.[4]

Political career

Mason entered politics in 2012 Halifax municipal election, when he ran for the District 7 seat on the Halifax Regional Council.[8] He defeated incumbent councillor Sue Uteck by 96 votes, with Uteck attempting to reclaim her seat four years later in the 2016 Halifax municipal election.[9] Mason won the 2016 election with 61% of the vote compared to Uteck's 33%. He served as deputy mayor of Halifax for one year, beginning on 14 November 2017.[10]

Before the 2020 election, the district was renamed Halifax South Downtown to "bring greater clarity" while keeping the same boundaries, a move Mason requested with colleagues from council.[11] In 2020, Mason was reelected for a third term in District 7, with 62% of the vote.[12]

Following the decision of mayor Mike Savage not to run for a fourth term, Waye Mason entered the race for Mayor of Halifax on 10 June 2024.[13] His campaign manager was Mat Whynott, who had helped run the previous mayoral campaign of Savage.[13]

Mason's campaign placed an emphasis on ongoing housing instability, homelessness, and improving Halifax Transit service. Among his campaign proposals was to set up a new municipal housing authority, which would aim to provide more affordable housing in Halifax.[14][15]

Mason was defeated in the mayoral election by Andy Fillmore, a former Member of Parliament. Fillmore was elected Mayor of Halifax on 19 October 2024 with 42% of the vote. Out of 16 mayoral candidates in the 2024 Halifax municipal election, Mason placed second with 25% of the vote.[16]

After politics

In February 2025, Mason became Executive Vice President of ATN Strategies, a Canadian strategy and research firm.[17]

Family

Mason is the son of the Canadian Vice-Admiral Lynn Mason.[18]

Mason's grandfather, John Burton Waye, served in the Second World War with the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division as an engineer. In 2016, Mason travelled to the Netherlands where he retrieved a helmet that belonged to his grandfather. The helmet was badly damaged from when a military vehicle his grandfather was driving in was struck by a German mortar. He survived the attack, but was left permanently deaf in one ear. Mason stated that his grandfather spoke little of his time in the war, and discovering the events he endured in the decades after his death was an emotionally impactful experience.[19]

Electoral record

See also: Halifax Regional Council
2012 Halifax municipal election
Candidate Votes %
Waye Mason 1949 32.29
Sue Uteck 1835 30.41
Gerry Walsh 1796 29.76
Dawgfather PHD 357 5.92
Mike Macdonnell 98 1.62
Rejected ballots 22 0.36
Total 6057 100
Registered voters/turnout 17,912 33.82
Source: Halifax Regional Municipality[20]
2016 Halifax municipal election
Candidate Votes %
Waye Mason 2962 61.16
Sue Uteck 1590 32.83
Dominick Desjardins 259 5.35
Rejected ballots 32 0.66
Total 4843 100
Registered voters/turnout 15,566 31.11
Source: Halifax Regional Municipality[21]
2020 Halifax municipal election
Candidate Votes %
Waye Mason 3728 62.11
Jen Powley 1882 31.36
Craig Roy 287 4.78
Richard Arundel-Evans 105 1.75
Total 6002 100
Registered voters/turnout 18,512 32.42
Source: Halifax Regional Municipality[22]
2024 Halifax mayoral election
Candidate Votes %
Andy Fillmore 52,618 42.52
Waye Mason 30,889 24.96
Pam Lovelace 19,767 15.98
Jim Hoskins 7194 5.81
Darryl Johnson 4668 3.77
Greg Frampton 2647 2.14
Other candidates 5952 4.81
Total 123,735 100
Source: Halifax Regional Municipality[23]

Publications

  • Mason, Waye (25 August 2019). "OP-ED: Now is not the time for partisan politics". Cape Breton Post. Sydney, NS: Saltwire Network. Archived from the original on 28 August 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2025.
  • —; Taylor, Zach (25 October 2022). "Let Halifax Regional Municipality do its job". Saltwire Network. Halifax, NS. Archived from the original on 25 October 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2025.
  • — (15 November 2023). "The Nova Scotia-HRM relationship needs a reset". PNI Atlantic News. Halifax, NS: Postmedia Network. Archived from the original on 21 June 2025. Retrieved 21 June 2025.

References

  1. ^ Mott, Sean (10 June 2024). "Longtime councillor Waye Mason running for mayor in Halifax election". CTV News. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  2. ^ a b "About Waye". wayemason.ca. Archived from the original on 4 May 2025. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  3. ^ a b Lang, Alison (19 February 2010). "Waye Mason Passes the Buck". The Coast. Halifax, NS: Overstory Media Group. Archived from the original on 20 June 2025. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  4. ^ a b Outhit, Allison (23 April 2009). "Waye Mason Executive Director of Halifax Pop Explosion and Instructor, Nova Scotia Community College". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on 3 November 2024. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  5. ^ Horsey, Jen (20 October 1994). "DSU on the record" (PDF). The Dalhousie Gazette. Dalhousie University. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 December 2024. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  6. ^ Barclay, Michael; Jack, Ian A.D.; Schneider, Jason (2011) [2001]. Have Not Been the Same: The CanRock Renaissance 1985-1995. Toronto, ON: ECW Press. ISBN 978-1-5549-0968-1.
  7. ^ Thomson, Aly (23 April 2017). "'We have a really important conjunction': Awards reveal Halifax's new pop chops". CTV News. The Canadian Press. Archived from the original on 19 November 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  8. ^ Wählen, Claire (28 September 2012). "Q&A: Waye Mason". Dalhousie Gazette. Halifax, NS: Dalhousie University. Archived from the original on 30 April 2025. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
  9. ^ Boon, Jacob (26 May 2016). "Sue Uteck to battle Waye Mason for Halifax South Downtown". The Coast. Halifax, NS: Overstory Media Group. Archived from the original on 25 January 2025. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  10. ^ "Coun. Waye Mason acclaimed deputy mayor". halifax.ca. Halifax Regional Municipality. 14 November 2017. Archived from the original on 31 December 2024. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  11. ^ "Request for Council's Consideration" (PDF). halifax.ca. Halifax Regional Municipality. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 December 2024. Retrieved 31 December 2024.
  12. ^ Munro, Nicole (19 October 2020). "New councillors to challenge previous Halifax regional council decisions". The Chronicle Herald. Halifax, NS: Postmedia Network. Archived from the original on 21 June 2025. Retrieved 21 June 2025.
  13. ^ a b "Longtime Halifax councillor Waye Mason running for mayor". CBC News. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 12 July 2018. Archived from the original on 22 May 2025. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  14. ^ MacDonald, Mary (11 October 2024). "Mayoral candidate Waye Mason weighs in on his policies". The Dalhousie Gazette. Dalhousie University. Archived from the original on 17 February 2025. Retrieved 31 December 2024.
  15. ^ Rent, Suzanne (6 September 2024). "If elected as Halifax mayor, Waye Mason says he'd create a municipal housing authority". Halifax Examiner. Halifax, NS. Archived from the original on 31 December 2024. Retrieved 21 June 2025.
  16. ^ Cuthbertson, Richard (19 October 2024). "Andy Fillmore elected Halifax's next mayor". CBC News. Nova Scotia: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 16 June 2025. Retrieved 21 June 2025.
  17. ^ Chisholm, Colin (25 February 2025). "Waye Mason Lands Gig At M5 Group". AllNovaScotia. Retrieved 5 April 2025.
  18. ^ Bousquet, Tim (2 January 2018). "Here are the Nova Scotians named in the Paradise Papers". Halifax Examiner. Retrieved 7 July 2025.
  19. ^ Donovan, Moira (10 November 2016). "Coun. Waye Mason uncovers grandfather's WWII contribution". CBC News. Nova Scotia: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 20 June 2025. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
  20. ^ "Municipal Elections Result Recap: Municipal and School Board Elections, October 2012" (PDF). halifax.ca. Halifax Regional Municipality. 2012. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
  21. ^ "Results Summary for All Matters as Voted Upon for the 2016 Municipal and School Board Elections" (PDF). halifax.ca. Halifax Regional Municipality. 20 October 2016. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
  22. ^ "2020 Municipal and CSAP Election Results" (PDF). halifax.ca. Halifax Regional Municipality. 2020. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
  23. ^ "2024 Election Results". halifax.ca. Halifax Regional Municipality. 2024. Retrieved 20 June 2025.

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