Byelection for Cornwallis reeve still in limbo

There’s still no byelection in sight to replace former RM of Cornwallis reeve Sam Hofer, although one former councillor has expressed interest in running for the job.

The municipality, however, continues to delay the byelection until it hires a new chief administrative officer.

Cornwallis has been without a reeve since April 7, and without a full-time CAO since June 2022.

Acting Reeve Terry Ross (Ward 1), who was deputy reeve until Hofer resigned after being found in violation of the Municipal Act, said there could be a byelection in November or December, but he’s “dart-boarding” on that timeline.

“That’s the number one priority after we get the CAO hired, is to get that byelection going,” Ross told the Sun Wednesday.

Ross said the RM has received more than 100 applications for the CAO position and had offered someone the job last month. That person then withdrew her application.

The municipality then had to go through another round of applications, with some criteria removed.

“We want a combination of skill-sets, somebody who has the knowledge of the Municipal Act as well as finance experience,” Ross said. “That’s a deadly combination, and it comes at a cost, I’m afraid. So we’ll see where this takes us.”

The RM is using a recruiting firm to help with the search and will be doing interviews when all the councillors are available.

“We’re looking at a wider pool,” Ross said. “There are some very interesting names on the list, people who have the experience that we’re looking for.”

Meanwhile, with the byelection for reeve still in limbo, one former councillor said he is “strongly considering” a run for the position.

Mike Waddell, a former Ward 1 councillor, said he “trusts the process” council is taking in hiring a CAO before scheduling the vote.

“I trust the current members to follow through on the processes that the province has set out in legislation, and I’m comfortable with the timing,” Waddell said Thursday.

He served as a councillor between 2014 and 2018.

“If you rush them or force them, they can get messier,” he said. “The current council doesn’t need any more challenges than they’ve already faced.”

Waddell said he has spoken to all four members of council about his intentions to run and has also gotten advice from the last four reeves.

If he was elected, he would be “very responsible with the taxpayers’ investment,” Waddell said. He added he would be accessible and honest as the reeve.

“I’m a big believer in being available to the taxpayer and returning calls in a timely fashion,” he said. “And admitting to people that I wouldn’t necessarily be the person who has all the answers, but would know how to help people find them.”

Waddell was elected as Ward 1 councillor alongside Hofer in 2014. He finished second of five candidates, with the top two candidates being elected.

“It’s an incredible RM with great, great residents and strong history. It’s just kind of gone through a bit of a rough patch that hopefully we can help bring stability to it,” he said. “I’m a big believer in not trying to stir things up, but trying to be someone who stabilizes things.”

The Municipal Act states that “council must hold a byelection to fill a vacancy on the council as soon as is reasonably possible,” with exceptions if the resignation happens within a year of the next scheduled election.

The next municipal election is Oct. 28, 2026.

The provincial government said democratic representation is a “key consideration” of the Municipal Act, and that the RM doesn’t have a deadline for scheduling the byelection.

“The act does not impose a specific deadline for byelections to occur,” a government spokesperson said in an email.

“While ‘as soon as is reasonably possible’ is not explicitly defined by the act, this section of the act is meant to balance the right to democratic representation with any extenuating circumstances, such as a state of emergency, that may affect the time and resources required to conduct a byelection.”

» alambert@brandonsun.com