A professional stuntman running for council in Squamish, B.C. is promising to set himself on fire if the district's voter turnout improves in November's election.
Peter Kent, who was Arnold Schwarzenegger's double in "Terminator" and other films, issued the challenge on YouTube this month.
Squamish, with a population of about 17,000 people, is located halfway between Vancouver and Whistler. In its 2011 municipal election, 34.2 per cent of eligible voters cast a ballot.
"We can do better than that. Come on!" says Kent in the video. "If we get a higher voter turnout in this election Nov. 15, I, as a professional stuntman, will set myself on fire in the centre of this street."
Kent, 57, said he wants to make Squamish a "safe, healthy and prosperous place for families and residents."
Kent currently operates the "only stunt training academy in Canada" called "Peter Kent's School of Hard Knocks."
He ran unsuccessfully for Squamish council in 2011.
Here are some of the other unusual candidates running in B.C. municipal elections next month:
Unusual B.C. Municipal Election Candidates
Changes the Clown, Victoria, B.C.(01 of41)
Changes the Clown is running for mayor of Victoria, B.C. as a way to raise awareness of child poverty. He is campaigning for an affordable childcare program and a living wage policy.Changes, whose real name is Rob Duncan, is a social scientist with a PhD in developmental psychology. (credit:Changes the Clown For Mayor Facebook)
Changes the Clown, Victoria, B.C.(02 of41)
(credit:Changes the Clown For Mayor Facebook)
Changes the Clown, Victoria, B.C.(03 of41)
(credit:Changes the Clown For Mayor Facebook)
Changes the Clown, Victoria, B.C.(04 of41)
(credit:Changes the Clown For Mayor Facebook)
Sylvia Gung, Burnaby(05 of41)
Sylvia Gung, who is running for Burnaby mayor, wants to ban kissing and holding hands in public. In her second attempt at the office, Gung is pledging to establish a "wholesome society." (credit:Sylvia Gung)
Ben James, Kamloops(06 of41)
Ben James, 30, is running for Kamloops mayor because he's "bored." "I’ve got nothing else to do and Kamloops needs a new mayor. We need some fresh blood in this town," said an unemployed James, who is known for pikcing up dirty syringes around a park. (credit:Canadian Press/Kamloops This Week)
Cherryse Kaur Kaiser, Vancouver(07 of41)
In her candidate's statement to be Vancouver mayor, Cherryse Kaur Kaiser writes: "I live in the utter udder bliss of my Milky Way Universal breast vortex.... We're having an absolute blast and in the quiet of your heart, you'll feel your wild in you waking up into your Living Organic-Oneness Vortex-to-Vortex-to-Vortex-Enjoyment-Endearment-Embodyment-Empowerment-Enlightenment.My job on earth is to invite you into the bliss. I'm a concert pianist with a masters of theology well versed in our shared pain." (credit:YouTube)
Obi Canuel, Surrey(08 of41)
Obi Canuel, 37, an ordained minister in the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, is running for Surrey city council. He has been in the news because he lost his driver’s licence for his insistence on wearing a pasta strainer in his photo. (credit:Obi Canuel)
Obi Canuel, Surrey(09 of41)
(credit:Obi Canuel)
John Bjornstrom, Williams Lake(10 of41)
John Bjornstrom, who was a fugitive from police for two years is running for mayor of Williams Lake, B.C.He earned the title "Bushman of the Shuswap" because he survived on food and items he stole from cabins in the Shuswap Lake area.
Mike Hansen, Vancouver(11 of41)
“I’ve sold cannabis for a little while off and on,” Mike Hansen, who is running for Vancouver mayor, told 24 Hours. "That’s the only way I could run the campaign is if I had a few extra bucks in my pocket, because I’m in the poverty level."This is his sixth time running for political office in Greater Vancouver, said the newspaper. (credit:Mike Hansen Facebook)
Peter Kent, Squamish(12 of41)
Peter Kent, a professional stuntman running for council in Squamish, is promising to set himself on fire if the district's voter turnout improves in November's election. (credit:Peter Kent For Mayor Facebook)
Peter Kent, Squamish(13 of41)
Kent was Arnold Schwarzenegger's stunt double in several movies, including "Terminator" and "Commando." (credit:Peter Kent For Mayor Facebook)
Peter Kent, Squamish(14 of41)
(credit:Peter Kent For Mayor Facebook)
Peter Kent, Squamish(15 of41)
(credit:Peter Kent For Mayor Facebook)
Peter Kent, Squamish(16 of41)
(credit:Peter Kent For Mayor Facebook)
Nicole Joliet, Surrey(17 of41)
Nicole Joliet is a trans woman running for Surrey school trustee. "I have no credentials beyond having graduated high school rather recently and thus having a rather good idea of the deplorable conditions currently existing in B.C. schools," she writes on her campaign Facebook site. (credit:Nicole Joliet For Surrey School Trustee)
Kirk LaPointe(18 of41)
The veteran newsman is used to monitoring politics behind the scenes as a senior editor at The Vancouver Sun, CTV, Canadian Press, and National Post. He was also CBC ombudsman from 2010 to 2012 and is currently a journalism professor at UBC. LaPointe, 56, was born in Toronto and raised by a single mother. Here are five things you may not know about him. (credit:NPA)
Goaltender(19 of41)
"I am a goaltender for three hockey teams. They are rooting for me to win the mayoralty, I suspect, so they can find someone to replace me. I suppose I will take the support wherever it is." (credit:Kirk LaPointe)
Music blogger(20 of41)
"I am an avid music fan. It started by seeing The Beatles at age six. I have seen hundreds of concerts and, because I was a music writer in earlier journalism days, interviewed hundreds of musicians. I try to stay current."(Lapointe is seen here with radio personalities from The Kid Carson Show on SONiC.) (credit:Kirk LaPointe)
Coach(21 of41)
"I coach girls softball, a team called Blue Thunder, having coached them from Mites level into Midget over seven great seasons. It’s the best time of year. The vibe is fantastic." (credit:Motiontide)
Coach(22 of41)
(credit:Motiontide)
Marathoner(23 of41)
"I have run nine marathons and more than 100 10K races, none of them in the first one-third of the finishers. I have run for 32 years and have missed a birthday run only once in that time. I used to be upset when I was called a jogger; now I’d consider that an upgrade." (credit:Motiontide)
Magician(24 of41)
"I know one good magic trick. I teach it every year to journalism students because it involves choosing a word from the newspaper, writing it on a slip of paper, handing that paper to someone, then having another person choose the same word. Only two people have figured the trick out when they've seen it." (credit:Kirk LaPointe)
Gregor Robertson(25 of41)
Born in North Vancouver, Gregor Robertson previously served as a B.C. MLA. He's been running the city since 2008, and is gunning for a third term in the November municipal election. Here are some surprising facts you may not have heard before. (credit:Vision Vancouver)
Sailor(26 of41)
He sailed a 40-foot wooden sailboat across the Pacific Ocean to New Zealand on a boat he helped restore and build himself. (credit:Gregor Robertson)
Player(27 of41)
He’s played soccer all his life. (credit:Gregor Robertson)
Farmer(28 of41)
He used to be an organic farmer on an acreage near Fort Langley. (credit:Gregor Robertson)
Spicy(29 of41)
His favourite meal in general is spicy Chinese or Mexican food. (credit:Canadian Press)
Entrepreneur(30 of41)
He co-founded Happy Planet, a successful multi-million dollar B.C. juice and natural foods company. The soups are his favourite Happy Planet product. (credit:Kris Krug/Flickr)
Famous relative(31 of41)
He’s a distant relative of Norman Bethune (the mayor's full name is Gregor Angus Bethune Robertson). His grandmother was a first cousin to the Canadian doctor who brought modern medicine to rural China. (credit:Matthew Stinson/Flickr)
Meena Wong(32 of41)
The community organizer, who currently works with Vancouver Coastal Health, was born in China and spent part of her childhood in Hong Kong. She moved to Canada as an international student when she was 19. If elected, Wong would be Vancouver’s first female mayor, as well as the first Chinese person in that role. Here are some fun facts she shared with HuffPost B.C. (credit:COPE)
She's a community gardener.(33 of41)
She started EcoMinds, a group that promotes better mental health through gardening. (credit:Meena Wong)
She's a paddler.(34 of41)
She's a member of the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team. (credit:Meena Wong)
Loves Haida Gwaii.(35 of41)
She lists kayaking and hiking in Haida Gwaii as one of her favourite vacation pastimes. (credit:Meena Wong)
(36 of41)
(credit:Meena Wong)
Batman-lover.(37 of41)
She's huge fan of Batman because he "fights injustice in Gotham City." (credit:HuffPost B.C.)
She's a closet artist.(38 of41)
(credit:Meena Wong)
(39 of41)
(credit:Meena Wong)
(40 of41)
(credit:Meena Wong)
Her motto:(41 of41)
"Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly." (credit:Meena Wong)