London City Council is the governing body of the city of London, Ontario, Canada.

Composition

London is divided into 14 wards, with residents in each ward electing one councillor. The mayor is elected citywide, who along with the councillors forms a 15-member council.

2017 reform

In spite of some controversy about this move, London was the first city in Canada (in May 2017) to decide to move a ranked choice ballot for municipal elections starting in 2018. Voters will mark their ballots in order of preference, ranking their top three favourite candidates. An individual must reach 50 per cent of the total to be declared elected; in each round of counting where a candidate has not yet reached that target, the person with the fewest votes is dropped from the ballot and their second or third choice preferences reallocated to the remaining candidates, with this process repeating until a candidate has reached 50 per cent.[1] On November 20, 2020, the Ontario Legislature passed Bill 218, the Supporting Ontario's Recovery and Municipal Elections Act, which included an amendment to the 1996 Municipal Elections Act to ban ranked balloting from being used in Ontario municipalities.[2] This move was symbolically opposed in October by a 14-1 vote by City Council. [3]

2010 reform

Prior to the 2006 civic election, London's city council consisted of 14 councillors (two from each of the seven former wards), four members of Board of Control (elected citywide), and one mayor (elected citywide), to form a 19-member council.

The composition and structure of city council was the subject of two questions on the 2003 election ballot, an action initiated by Ward 3 Councillor Fred Tranquilli and his discussion paper, A Better Way, which proposed a smaller city council with 10 wards (one councillor per ward), plus the mayor elected citywide and the elimination of Board of Control for an 11-member city council.

While the yes votes prevailed, the overall voter turnout was less than 50 per cent and according to the provisions of the Municipal Act, the referendum results were not binding.

When council decided to maintain the status quo, a grassroots citizens' activism group, Imagine London, appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) to change the ward composition to 14 wards defined by communities of interest in the city, including a separate ward for the downtown core.

UWO law librarian and media professor Sam Trosow argued the case at the OMB for Imagine London arguing that smaller wards based on communities of interest would result in more "effective representation" for the electorate. This argument is based on a 1991 Supreme Court of Canada decision involving electoral boundaries in the Province of Saskatchewan (often cited as the "Carter" case).

The OMB ruled for the Imagine London petitioners in late December 2005 and while the city sought leave to appeal the OMB decision to Superior Court via a full-day hearing in January 2006, leave to appeal was denied when Justice McDermid released his decision on February 28, 2006.

In the 2006 municipal election, a number of candidates included in their platforms the abolition of Board of Control. Among them was Gina Barber, a member of Imagine London, who gained a seat on the board of control, coming in second only to the deputy mayor, Tom Gosnell.

Following the election, a task force composed of a number of councillors, controllers, and citizen representatives was established to make recommendations on governance. The task force held numerous meetings and public hearings. On the basis of its deliberations, it recommended that the board of control be abolished and its functions assumed by a combination of standing committees, delegation to staff and citizen groups and Committee of the Whole. The recommendations were placed before a public participation meeting and subsequently adopted by council in a vote of 14 to 5. Consequently, positions for Board of Control were not on the 2010 municipal ballot.

1994–1997

Council elected in the 1994 municipal election.[4]

Councillor Office Notes
Dianne HaskettMayor
Grant HopcroftController
Dawn ErskineController
Vaughan MinorController
Diane WhitesideController
Sheila DavenportWard 1
Joe AvolaWard 1
Joe SwanWard 2
Bob BeccareaWard 2
Bernie MacDonaldWard 3
Betty HowardWard 3
Bill ArmstrongWard 4
Bud PolhillWard 4
Anne Marie DeCiccoWard 5
Gary WilliamsWard 5
Ben VeelWard 6
Megan WalkerWard 6
Ted WernhamWard 7
Martha JoyceWard 7

1997–2000

Council elected in the 1997 municipal election.[5]

Councillor Office Notes
Dianne HaskettMayor
Anne Marie DeCiccoController
Orlando ZamprongaController
Russ MonteithController
Diane WhitesideController
Ab ChahbarWard 1
Sandy LevinWard 1
Rob AlderWard 2
Joe SwanWard 2
Bernie MacDonaldWard 3
Fred TranquilliWard 3
Bill ArmstrongWard 4
Bud PolhillWard 4
Cheryl MillerWard 5
Gary WilliamsWard 5
Ben VeelWard 6
Megan WalkerWard 6
Susan EagleWard 7
Gord HumeWard 7

2000–2003

Council elected in the 2000 municipal election.[6]

Councillor Office Notes
Anne Marie DeCiccoMayor
Gord HumeController
Russ MonteithController
Bud PolhillController
Joe SwanController
Ab ChahbarWard 1
Sandy LevinWard 1
Joni BaechlerWard 2
Rob AlderWard 2
Bernie MacDonaldWard 3
Fred TranquilliWard 3
Bill ArmstrongWard 4
Roger CaranciWard 4
Cheryl MillerWard 5
Gary WilliamsWard 5
David WinningerWard 6
Harold UsherWard 6
Susan EagleWard 7
Ed CorriganWard 7

2003–2006

Council elected in the 2003 municipal election.[7]

Councillor Office Notes
Anne Marie DeCiccoMayor
Tom GosnellController
Gord HumeController
Russ MonteithController
Bud PolhillController
Ab ChahbarWard 1
Judy BryantWard 1
Joni BaechlerWard 2
Rob AlderWard 2
Bernie MacDonaldWard 3
Fred TranquilliWard 3
Bill ArmstrongWard 4
Roger CaranciWard 4
Cheryl MillerWard 5
Sandy WhiteWard 5
David WinningerWard 6
Harold UsherWard 6
Susan EagleWard 7
Paul Van MeerbergenWard 7

2006–2010

Council elected in the 2006 municipal election.[8]

Councillor Office Notes
Anne-Marie DeCicco-BestMayor
Gina BarberController
Tom GosnellController
Gord HumeController
Bud PolhillController
Roger CaranciWard 1
Bill ArmstrongWard 2
Bernie MacDonaldWard 3
Stephen OrserWard 4
Joni BaechlerWard 5
Nancy Ann BranscombeWard 6
Walter LoncWard 7
Paul HubertWard 8
Susan EagleWard 9
Paul Van MeerbergenWard 10
David WinningerWard 11
Harold UsherWard 12
Judy BryantWard 13
Cheryl MillerWard 14

2010–2014

Council elected in the 2010 municipal election.[9]

Councillor Office Notes
Joe FontanaMayorResigned on June 19, 2014 following a criminal conviction.[10]
Bud PolhillWard 1
Bill ArmstrongWard 2
Joe SwanWard 3
Stephen OrserWard 4
Joni BaechlerWard 5Appointed interim mayor on June 25, 2014 after Fontana's resignation.[11]
Russell MonteithWard 5Appointed as interim councillor for Ward 5 after Baechler's accession to the mayoralty.[12]
Nancy Ann BranscombeWard 6
Matt BrownWard 7
Paul HubertWard 8
Dale HendersonWard 9
Paul Van MeerbergenWard 10
Denise BrownWard 11
Harold UsherWard 12
Judy BryantWard 13
Sandy WhiteWard 14

2014–2018

Council elected in the 2014 municipal election.[13]

Councillor Office Communities
Matt BrownMayor
Michael van HolstWard 1Chelsea Green, Fairmont
Bill ArmstrongWard 2Pottersburg, Nelson Park, Trafalgar Heights
Mo Mohamed SalihWard 3Huron Heights
Jesse HelmerWard 4East London
Maureen CassidyWard 5Stoneybrook, Northdale, Northerest, Uplands
Phil SquireWard 6Broughdale, University Heights, Orchard Park, Sherwood Forest
Josh MorganWard 7White Hills, Medway Heights, Masonville, Hyde Park
Paul HubertWard 8Oakridge Park, Oakridge Acres,
Anna HopkinsWard 9Byron, Lambeth
Virginia RidleyWard 10Westmount
Stephen TurnerWard 11Cleardale, Southcrest Estates, Berkshire Village, Kensal Park, Manor Park
Harold UsherWard 12Glendale, Southdale, Lockwood Park, White Oaks, Cleardale
Tanya ParkWard 13Downtown London, Midtown, Blackfriars, Piccadilly/Adelaide, SoHo, KeVa, Woodfield, Oxford Park
Jared ZaifmanWard 14Glen Cairn Woods, Pond Mills, Wilton Grove, Glanworth, Westminster

2018–2022

Council elected in the 2018 municipal election.

Councillor Office Communities
Ed HolderMayor
Michael van HolstWard 1Hamilton Road, Chelsea Green, Fairmont, River Run, Glen Cairn
Shawn LewisWard 2Pottersburg, Nelson Park, Trafalgar Heights
Mo Mohamed SalihWard 3Huron Heights
Jesse HelmerWard 4East London
Maureen CassidyWard 5Stoneybrook, Northdale, Northerest, Uplands
Phil Squire (until 2021) Mariam Hamou (since 2021)Ward 6Broughdale, University Heights, Orchard Park, Sherwood Forest
Josh MorganWard 7
Deputy Mayor
White Hills, Medway Heights, Masonville, Hyde Park
Steve LehmanWard 8Oakridge Park, Oakridge Acres,
Anna HopkinsWard 9Byron, Lambeth
Paul Van MeerbergenWard 10Westmount
Stephen TurnerWard 11Cleardale, Southcrest Estates, Berkshire Village, Kensal Park, Manor Park
Elizabeth PelozaWard 12
Budget Chair
Glendale, Southdale, Lockwood Park, White Oaks, Cleardale
Arielle Kayabaga (until 2021) John Fyfe-Millar (since 2021)Ward 13Downtown London, Midtown, Blackfriars, Piccadilly/Adelaide, SoHo, KeVa, Woodfield, Oxford Park
Steve HillierWard 14Glen Cairn Woods, Pond Mills, Wilton Grove, Glanworth, Westminster

2022 – present

Council elected in the 2022 municipal election.

Councillor Office Communities
Josh MorganMayor
Hadleigh McAlisterWard 1Hamilton Road, Chelsea Green, Fairmont, River Run, Glen Cairn
Shawn LewisWard 2
Deputy Mayor[14]
Pottersburg, Nelson Park, Trafalgar Heights
Peter CuddyWard 3Huron Heights
Susan StevensonWard 4East London
Jerry PribilWard 5Stoneybrook, Northdale, Northerest, Uplands
Sam TrosowWard 6Broughdale, University Heights, Orchard Park, Sherwood Forest
Corrine RahmanWard 7White Hills, Medway Heights, Masonville, Hyde Park
Steve LehmanWard 8Oakridge Park, Oakridge Acres,
Anna HopkinsWard 9Byron, Lambeth
Paul Van MeerbergenWard 10Westmount
Skylar FrankeWard 11Cleardale, Southcrest Estates, Berkshire Village, Kensal Park, Manor Park
Elizabeth PelozaWard 12
Budget Chair[15]
Glendale, Southdale, Lockwood Park, White Oaks, Cleardale
David FerreiraWard 13Downtown London, Midtown, Blackfriars, Piccadilly/Adelaide, SoHo, KeVa, Woodfield, Oxford Park
Steve HillierWard 14Glen Cairn Woods, Pond Mills, Wilton Grove, Summerside, Glanworth, Westminster

City Halls

  • 1928–1971: a four-storey building at the corner of Dundas Street and Wellington added to the Public Utilities Commission Building c. 1918; it is now a commercial building at 272-274 Dundas Street[16]
  • 1971–present: located at 300 Dufferin Avenue, a 12-storey Modernist office block[16] built by local architect Philip Carter Johnson[17]

See also

References

  1. "London, Ont., votes to become 1st Canadian city to use ranked ballots". CBC News Windsor, May 2, 2017.
  2. "Bill 218, Supporting Ontario's Recovery and Municipal Elections Act, 2020". Ontario Legislative Assembly. November 20, 2020.
  3. Lupton, Andrew (October 27, 2020). "London council votes 14-1 to oppose province's move to quash ranked ballot voting". CBC News.
  4. "CITY OF LONDON MUNICIPAL ELECTION November 14, 1994" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2015-04-02.
  5. "City of London, Ontario Municipal Election November 10, 1997" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2015-04-02.
  6. "CITY OF LONDON MUNICIPAL ELECTION RETURNS NOVEMBER 13, 2000" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2015-04-02.
  7. "CITY OF LONDON OFFICIAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION RETURNS NOVEMBER 10.2003" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2014-05-29.
  8. "CITY OF LONDON OFFICIAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION RESULTS 2006" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2015-04-02.
  9. "CITY OF LONDON OFFICIAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION RESULTS OCTOBER 25, 2010" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2015-04-02.
  10. "Joe Fontana officially resigns as mayor of London" Archived 2014-10-27 at the Wayback Machine. Toronto Sun, June 19, 2014.
  11. "Baechler sworn in as interim London mayor" Archived 2014-10-30 at the Wayback Machine. CTV London, June 25, 2014.
  12. "Russell Monteith joins London City Council on his 80th birthday" Archived 2014-10-30 at the Wayback Machine. Metro, June 25, 2014.
  13. "CITY OF LONDON OFFICIAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION RESULTS Oct 27, 2014" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2015-04-02.
  14. "City Council Inaugural Meeting | City of London".
  15. "City Council Inaugural Meeting | City of London".
  16. 1 2 "City Hall at Dundas and Wellington Streets, London, Ontario". images.ourontario.ca. Archived from the original on 15 September 2016. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  17. "London, Ont.: Modernism showcase". Archived from the original on 23 April 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2018 via The Globe and Mail.
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