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By Jett Schwaier

ELXN25

Medicine Hat councillor candidate Cocks brings 13 years of council experience to the table in the election

Oct 9, 2025 | 12:39 PM

Bill Cocks is running for city council in Medicine Hat, bringing 13 years of experience to the table.

“I served three terms, three three-year terms from 1998 to 2007. And then I ran again in 2013 and served a four-year term,” Cocks said.

Cocks said his first priority if elected to council is to hire a new Chief Administrative Officer.

“The last time [we hired a CAO], there was conflict between Council administration from the get-go. So that’s a key priority. I would hope that I might be on the search committee.” Cocks said.

Other priorities Cocks will focus on are growth in Medicine Hat and improving city services.

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“We really need to get a fire lit here. It’s been stagnant for years,” Cocks said.

“I don’t have a magic wand that I can wave over that, but I think Council needs to be focused on that [growth] and get out and hustle.

On the topic of city services, Cocks said we’ve priced ourselves out of the market.

“I know that administration is charged with keeping city fees and rental rates in a market area and making money for the city, but these are services that we provide,” Cocks said.

“And when they cost more than our community groups can afford, then we’re doing something wrong and we need to fix it.”

The 73-year-old has lived in Medicine Hat all his life and worked for the Crown Prosecutor’s Office for over 16 years as a lawyer.

Cocks decided to run for council after being asked to do so by the public.

“Somebody said to me, ‘you need to think about this seriously. We need you back on Council.’ So I said, ‘okay, I will think about it seriously,” Cocks said

“I came to the conclusion that I still had things to offer, and I wanted to do it for the right reasons.”

Visit our dedicated municipal election page for more information on the 2025 municipal election and other local candidate profiles published to date.