ELORA – In the end it came down to an empty tea box. But before that there was quite a discussion on who council would nominate to run for a director’s seat at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO).
Councillors Bronwynne Wilton and Lisa MacDonald put their names forward to run for the seat, but municipalities can only endorse one candidate.
That caused a conundrum for Mayor Shawn Watters, he confessed at the June 10 council meeting.
He has respect for all councillors, he said, and both Wilton and MacDonald have skills and connections that would serve them well on the board. And having a local voice on a provincial board is “fantastic,” he said.
BRONWYNNE WILTON
“But there’s only one position, and I find it difficult to pick one over the other,” he said.
So he suggested drawing a name out of a hat.
Wilton was hoping to run for an AMO seat on the small urban caucus and MacDonald wanted to sit on the rural caucus.
But still, council could only endorse one candidate.
MacDonald said she was fine with having a draw while Wilton said she’d prefer that council vote.
Councillor Kim Jefferson said Wilton had approached her asking for her support, which she gave.
“This (drawing a name from a hat) is not what I anticipated,” Jefferson said. “I am not for the hat.”
Watters said county council will sometimes use a secret ballot – to elect the warden for example – but “I was told we couldn’t do that,” he said.
MacDonald said she was told there would be a draw and she agreed. “I don’t agree to debate it,” she said.
With council at a stalemate, “go ahead with the hat,” Wilton said.
And in the absence of a hat, an empty tea box was used.
Wilton’s name was drawn, council endorsed her nomination and now she will campaign at AMO to be elected to the seat.
