Election Reform Part 3 - And Then There Was Eight

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Here's a first draft of my report to Council. You may now want to weigh in on the debate. My apologies for the formatting but it doesn't transfer well from my WP to the Blog, but I think you can follow. The key point to me is to cut the fringe arguments and concentrate on the ballot(s)

And then there was eight.

          
Corporation of the Town of Huntsville
37 Main Street East
Huntsville, Ontario
P1H 1A1

October 15, 2012

Dear Sirs,

I have completed my review of the need for election reform within the Town of Huntsville and enclose for your consideration my report.

After all the discussion, both pro and con on this issue, the decision for most taxpayers will boil down to ‘What will my ballot look like and what will I be voting for?’

Attached please find two sample ballots, clearly outlining my proposal and modelled on the 2010 election results. One ballot covers the historical wards of Huntsville, Brunel & Chaffey and the second ballot covers the historic wards of Stisted, Stephenson, Port Sydney. This reduces the number of ballots from four to two.

Please also find attached a table designed to indicate voter representation by the various categories of councillors proposed. The proposed range of 4,200 to 6,800 voters per category of councillor compares very favourably to the 2,200 to 7,000 voters per councillor that currently exists.

The treatment of the Stisted, Stephenson, Port Sydney wards should act as a model for future expansion of the municipality should future opportunities arise.

Respectfully submitted,

　

Tim Doyle CA

Huntsville, Ontario










Corporation of the Town of HuntsvilleSample Ballot 2014 Brunel, Chaffey & Town Wards
Mayor - One to be Elected - Select one

Candidate Name	Vote (x)
Doughty, Claude
Mackenzie, Hugh

Town Council - three (3) to be elected - choose up to three (3)

Candidate Name	Vote (x)
Boysen, John
Davis, John
Ellas, Brian
Greaves, Mike
Terziano, Karin
Wiebe, Johnathan
Withey, Tim

District and Town Council - two (2) to be elected - choose up to two (2)

Candidate Name	Vote (x)
Aitchison, Scott
Bainbridge, Karen
Coleman, Fran
Thompson, Brian
Young, George

　

　

　







Corporation of the Town of Huntsville
Sample Ballot 2014 Stisted, Stephenson, Port Sydney Wards
Mayor - One to be Elected - Select one

Candidate Name	Vote (x)
Doughty, Claude
Mackenzie, Hugh

Town Council - one (1) to be elected - choose up to one (1)

Candidate Name	Vote (x)
Beatty, Bill
Schumacher, Det
Zanetti, Chris

District and Town Council - one (1) to be elected - choose up to one (1)

Candidate Name	Vote (x)
Beatty, Bill
Schumacher, Det
Zanetti, Chris

　

　　

　





Summary of Councillor Representation- Two ballot system

Position	Number elected	Number of voters	Average number of voters per elected councillor
Mayor	1	18,000	18,000
Town Council -Core area - at large	3	13,600	4,200
Town/District Council - Core area - at large	2	13,600	6,800
Town Council -S., S., P.S area	1	5,400	5,400
Town/District Council - S., S., P.S area	1	5,400	5,400
Total	8

　
Option 2: One Ballot, No Distinct Society
Should the residents of Stisted, Stephenson and Port Sydney agree to a single at large ballot I would recommend continuing with the recommended 8 person council. Add a councillor when the voter numbers pass 20,000 (5,000 per councillor)







Corporation of the Town of HuntsvilleSample Ballot 2014 - Single Ballot OptionAll Wards
Mayor - One to be Elected - Select one

Candidate Name	Vote (x)
Doughty, Claude
Mackenzie, Hugh

Town Council - four (4) to be elected - choose up to four (4)

Candidate Name	Vote (x)
Beatty, Bill
Boysen, John
Davis, John
Ellas, Brian
Greaves, Mike
Schumacher, Det
Terziano, Karin
Wiebe, Johnathan
Withey, Tim
Zanetti, Chris

District and Town Council - three (3) to be elected - choose up to two (3)

Candidate Name	Vote (x)
Aitchison, Scott
Bainbridge, Karen
Coleman, Fran
Thompson, Brian
Young, George

　







Summary of Councillor Representation- One ballot system

Position	Number elected	Number of voters	Average number of voters per elected councillor
Mayor	1	18,000	18,000
Town Council -All areas - at large	4	18,000	4,500
Town/District Council -All Areas - at large	3	18,000	6,000
Total	8