A northwestern Ontario council is appointing mayor and deputy mayor replacements. Is that allowed?

A small township in northwestern Ontario is looking to fill two of its five council seats, but instead of calling a byelection, the remaining councillors are appointing the replacements.

While a spokesperson for the communications company hired by the township says the move isn't "unique" in Ontario, one policy researcher is calling it "an unusual situation."

Ignace, about 250 kilometres northwest of Thunder Bay, is enduring "unfortunate times" — as interim Mayor Kim Baigrie put it — after Bill Gascon, mayor at the time, and Coun. Al Zimmer resigned April 3.

The resignations came less than six months after the municipal election brought in an entirely new slate of councillors and a new mayor for the 2022-2026 term. With a voter turnout of 69 per cent, Gascon achieved 81 per cent of the vote over his only competitor, former councillor Peggy Lucas.

Ignace has a population of about 1,200.

"Today, myself and Mr. Zimmer decided to resign our positions on council of Ignace due to which we feel is the irresponsible behaviours of our colleagues and administration this past month," Gascon said.

"I cannot in good [conscience] work alongside people who are ignoring their responsibility to this community in which they serve and were elected," Gascon posted April 3 on the Ignace Discussion Group on Facebook.

Neither Baigrie nor Rhonda Smith, the township's municipal administrator, responded to interview requests by CBC News at time of publication.

However, in a news release April 3, Baigrie and remaining Councillors Jodie Defeo and John Taddeo called the resignations "warranted and accepted."

The township issued a statement April 5 saying an investigation would be conducted into the circumstances surrounding the resignations, which involve township staff, councillors and others. 

Gascon and Zimmer were not available for interviews by time of publication.

Appointment versus byelection

Expertise for Municipalities Non-Profit Association, known as E4M, is aiding Ignace township through the process of filling Gascon's and Zimmer's seats. 

"Ignace council, after review and professional advice on municipal matters, carefully and efficiently decided to pursue this process instead of conducting a costly byelection in the township to replace the two vacancies," said a news release Wednesday from the township.

An expression of interest was issued Wednesday, and the timeline is as follows:

• May 26 at noon: Deadline to be assigned an expression of interest number.
• June 5 at noon: Deadline to fill out an online application and responses to a questionnaire.
• June 12 at 4:30 p.m.: Special council meeting where councillors will hear presentations from potential candidates.
• July 17: Two new councillors, chosen by the three remaining councillors, will be sworn into office.

The two replacements will fill councillor seats; a decision will be made later on who will assume the permanent roles of mayor and deputy mayor.

Summit PCG has been hired to oversee the township's communications during this process. It also does communications for E4M.

Jake Pastore, president of the communication and planning specialists company, explained why the current council will be appointing the replacements instead of allowing the public to elect them.

"They're already obviously getting close to a year already within the term, so that has a lot to do with it  … the time and resources that it takes to actually get the notices and all of that information out there — it's a very drawn-out process," Pastore said.

"They did not make this decision lightly. They went out and got formal and professional advice from E4M and others on what would be the most appropriate thing to do in this particular situation."

Peggy Young-Lovelace, director at E4M, was not available for an interview with CBC News, but directed inquiries to Pastore.

'This is an unusual situation': political science prof

While Pastore said appointing councillor replacements is "not a unique situation" in Ontario, one political science professor said Ignace's circumstances do stand out.

Lydia Miljan of the University of Windsor has more than 30 years of experience in policy research. She has seen instances where mayors have resigned and the deputy mayor steps in to fill their place — like what happened in Kingsville months before the 2022 election — or councillors have left for provincial or federal government positions and were replaced by appointment or election.

In 2019, Huntsville Mayor Scott Aitchison was elected as Parry Sound-Muskoka's MP. A byelection would have cost the town around $107,000, according to a staff report, so council opted to appoint his replacement.

In another case, when Bracebridge's mayor, Graydon Smith, resigned to run as the riding's MPP, the town's deputy mayor was appointed mayor the summer before the 2022 election, as reported by Metroland Media.

While council appointments happen periodically, they typically come closer to an election rather than months following one, Miljan said.

"Usually, the argument is, 'Well, we wouldn't go through a costly byelection because we're going to have another election really soon,' but that's not quite the case," she said. "Here, they're basically forgoing the byelection, which sounds like they're doing it for financial reasons."

Ultimately, Ignace's case "is an unusual situation," she concluded.

Public involvement in the process

The special council meeting slated for June 12 is open to the public, so Ignace residents can hear applicants' pitches to the current council on why they should be chosen. However, Pastore said residents will not be given the chance to ask questions during this meeting.

"If you allow people in the audience to start asking questions, it gets to potentially be drawn out," he said. "The intent is more for the actual candidates to present their views on specific topics."

When asked whether the appointment process may make residents feel left out, Pastore said they do have the option to get involved in a big way: to apply for the positions themselves.

CBC News requested a copy of the questionnaire applicants must fill out but was declined.

While those appointed to fill the vacancies could prove to be popular among the public, the process could also have a polarizing effect, said Miljan.

"Appointments always run the risk of having people concerned that it's just people being appointed by their friends," she said. 

Then again, while elections represent the popular will, those results may also be based on personality over skills.

While residents can file a complaint about council's appointments to the Ontario Land Tribunal or contact their MPP, "the ultimate judge of whether this is acceptable is the electorate at the next election," Miljan said.