With the election of Bracebridge Mayor Graydon Smith to provincial parliament last week, the mayor’s chair will soon be vacant.
Lori McDonald, the Town of Bracebridge’s Director of Corporate Services, explained that for the time being Smith remains Mayor until one of the following occurs:
- He resigns from office (in writing filed with the Clerk)
- As the candidate who received the greatest number of votes, the return of the Provincial Election is published in The Ontario Gazette
McDonald said the anticipated date of the publication has not been released. However, she noted that in 2018 it was published 16 days after the election.
After one of those two scenarios occurs, McDonald will bring forward a report to council to have the mayor’s seat declared vacant.
When declared vacant, the seat will need to be filled, as the Municipal Act requires municipalities to do so anytime there is a vacancy, except within 90 days of the regular Municipal Election. McDonald said in the current scenario that “magic date” is July 26, and therefore the seat must be filled.
Council can then decide if they want to fill the seat from within the current Council, or through an open call for applications from qualified electors in Bracebridge.
Rick Maloney is currently the Deputy Mayor of Bracebridge and in January he formally announced his intention to run for Mayor in this fall’s municipal election. However, he will not become Mayor for the time being unless he’s appointed by council or elected.
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