The next Municipal Election is scheduled to be held in October, 2022. Now is the time that planning for this election occurs. One topic on which Council is interested in hearing from you is how Members of Council are elected.
Presently, Council is comprised of seven (7) Members: the Mayor and six (6) Councillors, with one of these being appointed as the Deputy Mayor. All Members are elected “at large”, meaning that all those who cast their ballots have the option for Mayor and up to six (6) Councillors that they can vote for.
The alternative is to establish Wards which would be used to elect Members. Using our Official Plan Neighbourhoods as a guide, there could be three Wards – each electing two Members of Council. Regardless of the decision made, the Mayor would still be elected “at large”.
If selected, the Wards would be:
Lake Temagami Approximately 700 Properties
Temagami Urban Approximately 600 Properties
Marten River et al Approximately 500 Properties
The Marten River et al would be comprised of the Matabichuan, Marten River, and Backcountry neighbourhoods as defined by the Official Plan.
While moving to a Ward system is intended to ensure there is representation from all areas of the Municipality, there is no requirement for Candidates for Councillor positions to live in the Ward they are hoping to be elected in. Once Elected, while a Ward Councillor may have more connection to certain areas of the Municipality, Council would operate in a similar fashion with each Member having one vote regardless of the geographic nature of the topic.
COUNCIL WOULD LIKE TO HEAR FROM ALL ELIGIBLE ELECTORS
18 years-of-age or older, a Canadian citizen, and either a resident of the municipality or a property owner or tenant (or the spouse or same-sex partner of an owner or tenant) in the municipality during a specified time just before the election.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/XFLC2SC
Sincerely,
The Municipality of Temagami
705-569-3421