Ten Nominees Apply to Fill Town of Mono Council Vacancy

The Town of Mono’s councillors and staff could be in for a long night next week.

On October 12, 2021, Mono councillors discussed the process that they would undertake to fill the council vacancy. The opening on Mono council results from former Mayor Laura Ryan resigning after being ineligible to hold the position as she no longer owned property or resided in the municipality. Town staff notified councillors that they had received ten applications to fill the council vacancy. They also shared that a pre-screening process would not be employed. Therefore, all applicants will have the opportunity to be reviewed by council publicly.

The following people have qualified to be nominated to fill the Town of Mono’s council vacancy. The town’s website contains the submitted applications for each candidate.

Councillors reconsidered its decision to employ a ranked ballot system, opting instead for simple majoritarian voting. However, ballots will still be cast in ‘secret.’ If a candidate does not receive the support of at least three councillors on the first round of voting, council will move to a closed session to discuss. A second round of voting will follow this, which will only require a plurality of two votes. In the event of a tie on the second vote, council would re-enter closed session with the aim of establishing an agreement. If a clear winner is not determined, council may return to closed or choose to fill the vacancy through the drawing of straws.

“I’m optimistic that we’re going to end up with a result that avoids a scenario where we’re pulling a straw,” told Mayor John Creelman.

Mono council had previously resolved that candidates would have the opportunity to address them for a period of no longer than five minutes. This would be followed by nominees being subject to a series of questions posed by councillors in the public setting. Mono’s Mayor will have discretion over the length of the interview and the number of questions asked by councillors of any candidate.

“What you’re really suggesting is, for next Tuesday’s meeting, I bring my sleeping bag,” remarked Deputy Mayor Fred Nix.

The public can view the special council meeting scheduled for October 19, 2021, live or on-demand, on the Town of Mono’s website or its YouTube channel. One can find details regarding virtually attending the meeting via the GoToMeeting software application or phone on the town’s website. Mayor Creelman explained that the rationale for having portions of the meeting closed to the public was due to the discussion of matters where an identifiable individual is being discussed and that this is permitted by the town’s procedural bylaw and under the Municipal Act.

References – Ten Nominees Apply to Fill Town of Mono Council Vacancy

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Ten Nominees Apply to Fill Town of Mono Council Vacancy

References – Ten Nominees Apply to Fill Town of Mono Council Vacancy

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