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."London, Ont., votes to become 1st Canadian city to use ranked ballots". CBC News Windsor, May 2, 2017. 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. This move was symbolically opposed in October by a 14-1 vote by City Council.
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.
Councillor Office Notes Dianne Haskett Mayor Grant Hopcroft Controller Dawn Erskine Controller Vaughan Minor Controller Diane Whiteside Controller Sheila Davenport Ward 1 Joe Avola Ward 1 Joe Swan Ward 2 Bob Beccarea Ward 2 Bernie MacDonald Ward 3 Betty Howard Ward 3 Bill Armstrong Ward 4 Bud Polhill Ward 4 Anne Marie DeCicco Ward 5 Gary Williams Ward 5 Ben Veel Ward 6 Megan Walker Ward 6 Ted Wernham Ward 7 Martha Joyce Ward 7
1997–2000 Council elected in the 1997 municipal election.
Councillor Office Notes Dianne Haskett Mayor Anne Marie DeCicco Controller Orlando Zampronga Controller Russ Monteith Controller Diane Whiteside Controller Ab Chahbar Ward 1 Sandy Levin Ward 1 Rob Alder Ward 2 Joe Swan Ward 2 Bernie MacDonald Ward 3 Fred Tranquilli Ward 3 Bill Armstrong Ward 4 Bud Polhill Ward 4 Cheryl Miller Ward 5 Gary Williams Ward 5 Ben Veel Ward 6 Megan Walker Ward 6 Susan Eagle Ward 7 Gord Hume Ward 7
2000–2003 Council elected in the 2000 municipal election.
Councillor Office Notes Anne Marie DeCicco Mayor Gord Hume Controller Russ Monteith Controller Bud Polhill Controller Joe Swan Controller Ab Chahbar Ward 1 Sandy Levin Ward 1 Joni Baechler Ward 2 Rob Alder Ward 2 Bernie MacDonald Ward 3 Fred Tranquilli Ward 3 Bill Armstrong Ward 4 Roger Caranci Ward 4 Cheryl Miller Ward 5 Gary Williams Ward 5 David Winninger Ward 6 Harold Usher Ward 6 Susan Eagle Ward 7 Ed Corrigan Ward 7
2003–2006 Council elected in the 2003 municipal election.
Councillor Office Notes Anne Marie DeCicco Mayor Tom Gosnell Controller Gord Hume Controller Russ Monteith Controller Bud Polhill Controller Ab Chahbar Ward 1 Judy Bryant Ward 1 Joni Baechler Ward 2 Rob Alder Ward 2 Bernie MacDonald Ward 3 Fred Tranquilli Ward 3 Bill Armstrong Ward 4 Roger Caranci Ward 4 Cheryl Miller Ward 5 Sandy White Ward 5 David Winninger Ward 6 Harold Usher Ward 6 Susan Eagle Ward 7 Paul Van Meerbergen Ward 7
2006–2010 Council elected in the 2006 municipal election.
Councillor Office Notes Anne-Marie DeCicco-Best Mayor Gina Barber Controller Tom Gosnell Controller Gord Hume Controller Bud Polhill Controller Roger Caranci Ward 1 Bill Armstrong Ward 2 Bernie MacDonald Ward 3 Stephen Orser Ward 4 Joni Baechler Ward 5 Nancy Ann Branscombe Ward 6 Walter Lonc Ward 7 Paul Hubert Ward 8 Susan Eagle Ward 9 Paul Van Meerbergen Ward 10 David Winninger Ward 11 Harold Usher Ward 12 Judy Bryant Ward 13 Cheryl Miller Ward 14
2010–2014 Council elected in the 2010 municipal election.
Councillor Office Notes Joe Fontana Mayor Resigned on June 19, 2014 following a criminal conviction."Joe Fontana officially resigns as mayor of London" . Toronto Sun, June 19, 2014. Bud Polhill Ward 1 Bill Armstrong Ward 2 Joe Swan Ward 3 Stephen Orser Ward 4 Joni Baechler Ward 5 Appointed interim mayor on June 25, 2014 after Fontana's resignation."Baechler sworn in as interim London mayor" . CTV London, June 25, 2014. Russell Monteith Ward 5 Appointed as interim councillor for Ward 5 after Baechler's accession to the mayoralty."Russell Monteith joins London City Council on his 80th birthday" . Metro, June 25, 2014. Nancy Ann Branscombe Ward 6 Matt Brown Ward 7 Paul Hubert Ward 8 Dale Henderson Ward 9 Paul Van Meerbergen Ward 10 Denise Brown Ward 11 Harold Usher Ward 12 Judy Bryant Ward 13 Sandy White Ward 14
2014–2018 Council elected in the 2014 municipal election.
Councillor Office Communities Matt Brown Mayor Michael van Holst Ward 1 Chelsea Green, Fairmont Bill Armstrong Ward 2 Pottersburg, Nelson Park, Trafalgar Heights Mo Mohamed Salih Ward 3 Huron Heights Jesse Helmer Ward 4 East London Maureen Cassidy Ward 5 Stoneybrook, Northdale, Northeast, Uplands Phil Squire Ward 6 Broughdale, University Heights, Orchard Park, Sherwood Forest Josh Morgan Ward 7 White Hills, Medway Heights, Masonville, Hyde Park Paul Hubert Ward 8 Oakridge Park, Oakridge Acres, Anna Hopkins Ward 9 Byron, Lambeth Virginia Ridley Ward 10 Westmount Stephen Turner Ward 11 Cleardale, Southcrest Estates, Berkshire Village, Kensal Park, Manor Park Harold Usher Ward 12 Glendale, Southdale, Lockwood Park, White Oaks, Cleardale Tanya Park Ward 13 Downtown London, Midtown, Blackfriars, Piccadilly/Adelaide, SoHo, KeVa, Woodfield, Oxford Park Jared Zaifman Ward 14 Glen Cairn Woods, Pond Mills, Wilton Grove, Glanworth, Westminster
2018–2022 Council elected in the 2018 municipal election.
Councillor Office Communities Ed Holder Mayor Michael van Holst Ward 1 Hamilton Road, Chelsea Green, Fairmont, River Run, Glen Cairn Shawn Lewis Ward 2 Pottersburg, Nelson Park, Trafalgar Heights Mo Mohamed Salih Ward 3 Huron Heights Jesse Helmer Ward 4 East London Maureen Cassidy Ward 5 Stoneybrook, Northdale, Northeast, Uplands Phil Squire (until 2021) Mariam Hamou (since 2021) Ward 6 Broughdale, University Heights, Orchard Park, Sherwood Forest Josh Morgan Ward 7Deputy Mayor White Hills, Medway Heights, Masonville, Hyde Park Steve Lehman Ward 8 Oakridge Park, Oakridge Acres, Anna Hopkins Ward 9 Byron, Lambeth Paul Van Meerbergen Ward 10 Westmount Stephen Turner Ward 11 Cleardale, Southcrest Estates, Berkshire Village, Kensal Park, Manor Park Elizabeth Peloza Ward 12Budget Chair Glendale, Southdale, Lockwood Park, White Oaks, Cleardale Arielle Kayabaga (until 2021) John Fyfe-Millar (since 2021) Ward 13 Downtown London, Midtown, Blackfriars, Piccadilly/Adelaide, SoHo, KeVa, Woodfield, Oxford Park Steve Hillier Ward 14 Glen Cairn Woods, Pond Mills, Wilton Grove, Glanworth, Westminster
2022–present Council elected in the 2022 municipal election.
Councillor Office Communities Josh Morgan Mayor Hadleigh McAlister Ward 1 Hamilton Road, Chelsea Green, Fairmont, River Run, Glen Cairn Shawn Lewis Ward 2Deputy Mayor Argyle, Pottersburg, Nelson Park, Trafalgar Heights Peter Cuddy Ward 3 Huron Heights Susan Stevenson Ward 4 East London Jerry Pribil Ward 5 Stoneybrook, Northdale, Northeast, Uplands, Stoney Creek Sam Trosow Ward 6 Broughdale, University Heights, Orchard Park, Sherwood Forest Corrine Rahman Ward 7 White Hills, Medway Heights, Masonville, Hyde Park Steve Lehman Ward 8 Oakridge Park, Oakridge Acres Anna Hopkins Ward 9 Byron, Lambeth, Tempo Paul Van Meerbergen Ward 10 Westmount Skylar Franke Ward 11 Cleardale, Southcrest Estates, Berkshire Village, Kensal Park, Manor Park Elizabeth Peloza Ward 12Budget Chair Glendale, Southdale, Lockwood Park, White Oaks, Cleardale David Ferreira Ward 13 Downtown London, Midtown, Blackfriars, Piccadilly/Adelaide, SoHo, KeVa, Woodfield, Oxford Park Steve Hillier Ward 14 Glen Cairn Woods, Pond Mills, Wilton Grove, Jackson, 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 1971–present: located at 300 Dufferin Avenue, a 12-storey Modernist office block built by local architect Philip Carter Johnson
See also List of mayors of London, Ontario
References
External links Official website