The mayor of Grosse-Ile Rose-Elmonde Clarke has announced that she does not intend to seek a fourth mandate from her fellow citizens after 12 years in the role.

While reluctant to make the decision, she explained that the decision was made due to hearing problems that have worsened in recent years.

As one of the only women to sit on the city council when first elected in 2009, she is pleased to see that this trend has reversed over time. Clarke's team is now predominantly female.

The Grosse-Ile's mayor's office requires a good knowledge of the archipelago's ecosystem and fluency in both languages, she said, will will be a challenge for her successor.

She says she is proud to have built bridges between the English-speaking and French-speaking communities on the Islands, leaving behind the tensions inherited from the difficult merger and diffusion of the cantons in the early 2000s.

In an interview with CFIM, Clarke talks about her decision and career highlights during her time as mayor: