Repulse Bay residents asked to vote on name change

The byelection for mayor in Repulse Bay, Nunavut, today will also ask voters whether they are in favour of changing the community's name.

The suggestion is to change the community's official name to its Inuktitut designation of Naujaat, which means nesting place for seagulls.

"We tied it in with the mayor's election so that we can get as many people voting and find out what people are thinking regarding the name change," said SAO Kowesa Etitiq.

"Then mayor and council will take that information and go from there."

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The community's website says English sailor Christopher Middleton named the "Bay of Repulse" in 1742, frustrated that it was a bay and not the entrance to the Northwest Passage like he had hoped.

There are three candidates running for mayor: Solomon Maliki, Marcel Mapsalak and Johnny Tungilik.

Polls close tonight at 7 p.m. CT.