An official list of canadidates for Collingwood council has been confirmed, and the current council is now in lame duck status.
There are three candidates for mayor, three for deputy mayor, and 12 running for seven seats on Collingwood council. While there are six of the current eight members of council running for positions, only five could possibly be elected as two are in contest for the mayor's job.
Because less than 75 per cent of the new council will be incumbents, Collingwood's current elected representatives are limited in their decision-making power. A provision of the Municipal Act triggers lame duck status for councils in this situation, which is meant to prevent an outgoing council from operating in a way that would disadvantage the incoming council.
During the lame duck period, which will last until a new council is sworn in (November 15, 2022), staff or officers of the municipality cannot be hired or dismissed, property belonging to the town valued over $50,000 cannot be sold or donated, and the town cannot make any purchase exceeding $50,000 that has not already been approved through the budget, unless it is an emergency situation.
You can read more about Collingwood's lame duck status here.
Collingwood council is made up of nine members, including a mayor, deputy mayor, and seven councillors. The current council is one seat short after former mayor, Brian Saunderson, left to become a member of provincial parliament for Simcoe-Grey.
The town's mayor and deputy mayor also sit as councillors on Simcoe County council.
Here's the list of candidates running for Collingwood council in the fall election:
Mayor
- Yvonne Hamlin
- Mariane McLeod
- Norm Sandberg
Deputy Mayor
- Tim Fryer
- Bob Madigan
- Jordan Fleming
Council (7 to be elected)
- Christopher Baines
- Steve Berman
- Ian Chadwick
- George Dickenson
- Deb Doherty
- Cam Ecclestone
- Brandon Houston
- Kathy Jeffery
- Steve Johns
- Steve Perry
- Chris Potts
- Rob Ring
The list of candidates is now official, and has been certified by the town clerk.
For school board elections, the following candidates will be running for trustee positions:
Simcoe County District School Board trustee for Collingwood/Wasaga Beach
- Mike Foley
- Al Halimic
- Bob Lima
- Barbara-Anne Smith
- Audrey Stukas
Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board for the trustee position representing Clearview, Collingwood, Springwater and Wasaga Beach
- Diane Belvedere
- Shawn Cooper
- Heather Eby
- Carol Fraser
- Kelly-Anne Kenny
Conseil scolaire Viamond (French public) for the trustee representing counties of Bruce, Grey, Simcoe, and Dufferin
- Saveria Caruso
- Eric Lapointe
Conseil scolaire caholique MonAvenir (French Catholic) for the trustee representing the region of Simcoe-Muskoka
- Claire Thibideau (acclaimed)
Voters will only vote for one of the board trustees. By default, a voter's card will include the English public board (Simcoe County District School Board), unless a voter has directed their school board taxes to a Catholic or French board.
Election day is Oct. 24, but advanced voting begins Oct. 8.
This year, Collingwood residents will have the option to vote online anytime between Oct. 8 at 10 a.m. and Oct. 24 at 8 p.m. There will also be paper ballot voting available at the Collingwood Public Library on Saturdays and Wednesdays in October leading up to and including voting day on Oct. 24.
You can confirm you are registered to vote in the Town of Collingwood for municipal and school board elections online at voterlookup.ca.
