Peguis First Nation votes in new chief, who previously held the title

Peguis First Nation has a new chief, who already knows a bit about the job.

Members of the First Nation elected former chief Glenn Hudson, ousting current chief Cindy Spence in an election that was held on Friday. 

"I'm certainly very pleased and very thankful to be able to be in this role once again," Hudson said Sunday. "I believe people see a vision that I had presented in terms of us moving forward, and they certainly support that vision, and that's great." 

Hudson said he plans to focus on projects like Assiniboia Downs, Kapyong Barracks, and building a new personal care home. But he said finances are also a concern. 

"When I left office we had a $12.8-million deficit, and now it's over $31 million, so that's something we're going to have to wrestle with," he said. "But we've done it before and we've done it again."

Ballot counting started Saturday morning and finished at about 4:30 Sunday morning.

Cindy Spence said she's disappointed, but happy to have made history as the community's first female chief. 

"It wasn't the outcome I was looking for. I sympathize with my supporters and my community. We had a mission to make Peguis a better place and I was only part way through that mandate," Spence told CBC News on Sunday.

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Spence said she is proud of what she was able to accomplish during her two-year term and will continue to be an activist in the community.

"You know I've taken a lot of pride in the work I've completed for Pegius," she said.

"I've always been a community activist and a strong voice for what's right in our community and stood up for the people and I'll continue to do that."​

Spence said she plans to run again in the next election.

Annette Spence-Meeches, Wade Sutherland, Glennis Sutherland and Mary Tyler-Bear were elected as councillors.