The mayor has one vote of seven. Here is what the job can actually do.

A mayor of Hawkesbury is the chairman of a seven-person council, and one vote of the seven. A tie loses. A mayor does not run the staff. The staff run the town day to day, under the Chief Administrative Officer, who is the Town's top manager. Council directs staff by vote, through that officer. The strong-mayor law adds a narrow exception: for the budget and the other strong-mayor powers below, the mayor can direct staff in writing, and the Clerk and the Chief Administrative Officer get a copy by the next business day. The big decisions belong to council as a body, by vote. Which services exist. What the tax rate is. What gets built. Who gets a contract.

So why run for it? Because the job does hold real powers. That set of powers grew recently. And it is mostly sitting unused.

What a mayor can do alone, no vote needed

Since May 1, 2025, the province has made Hawkesbury a strong-mayor municipality. That comes with a specific list of legal powers attached to this office:

What takes council, and the math of getting it

An ordinary motion, meaning a normal item that only needs a simple majority, passes on a majority of the members present. That is four of seven when everyone shows up. Changing council's own rules takes two meetings and two-thirds of the members present: five of seven when everyone shows up. A motion that loses can only be brought back by someone who voted with the winning side. That math is the real job of a mayor. It means building four votes, in public, item by item. I have spent my life pricing work, presenting it, and earning the yes.

The six people elected beside me are the government, just as much as the mayor is. I promise them the same thing I promise you. Every proposal priced. Every document shared early. Every vote asked for in the open. And credit given when a councillor carries a file. Nobody delivers anything alone in this system, and I would not want a system where somebody could.

What is not the Town's to decide at all

Out of each dollar you pay in municipal taxes, 67 cents stays with the Town. About a quarter goes to the United Counties of Prescott and Russell. There, Hawkesbury holds one of eight seats, and the votes are weighted by the number of voters. The rest goes to the school boards. The hospital, policing standards, ambulances, long-term care, welfare rates, the county roads and the bridge to Quebec: other governments own those. A mayor has real tools there. The county seat. Going in person to put our case to ministers. And applications sent in on time. That is exactly how my roads plan and my Main Street plan are built. When something is not the Town's, I will tell you whose it is and show you the letter I sent them.

Who decides?

• The yearly budget The mayor's pen “The mayor writes the annual budget himself and puts it in front of council. It is due by February 1. The mayor cannot hand that job to anyone else.”
• The hospital Another government “The hospital, policing standards, ambulances, long-term care, welfare rates, the county roads and the bridge to Quebec: other governments own those.” “A mayor has real tools there. The county seat.”
• Overturning a veto Council, by vote “The mayor can veto a change, which means block it. Council can only overturn that veto with two-thirds of all members, five of seven.”
• About a quarter of your tax bill The Counties, one seat of eight “About a quarter goes to the United Counties of Prescott and Russell. There, Hawkesbury holds one of eight seats, and the votes are weighted by the number of voters.”
• Welfare rates Another government “The hospital, policing standards, ambulances, long-term care, welfare rates, the county roads and the bridge to Quebec: other governments own those.” “A mayor has real tools there. The county seat.”
• Calling a special meeting The mayor's pen “A mayor can call a special meeting of council at any time.”
• The tax rate Council, by vote “The big decisions belong to council as a body, by vote. Which services exist. What the tax rate is.”
• The bridge to Quebec Another government “The hospital, policing standards, ambulances, long-term care, welfare rates, the county roads and the bridge to Quebec: other governments own those.” “A mayor has real tools there. The county seat.”

How I will use the real levers, for you

1. My pen Week one: the powers, in writing. A signed public decision saying which strong-mayor responsibilities I take up. You will know exactly who answers for what before I touch anything.
2. My pen The 2027 budget, written to the plans. The budget pen is the biggest single power the job holds. Mine writes the roads pages (point 1) from the Town's own asset plan, which is the Town's own plan for the things it owns and has to keep up. It writes the events work from the Main Street plan (point 2). And it comes with the plain-language book my Open the books plan (point 5) promises.
3. My penApplication The microphone, on a schedule. The promoter role stops being ceremonial. There will be a standing calendar of trips to put our case to other governments, applications, and meetings with the people who hand out the money. It gets published, and the results get reported.
4. Council vote Four votes, earned in the open. Every major motion gets priced and shared with all six councillors before I ask for it. On spending for the things the Town builds and owns, I will ask for a recorded vote, so every councillor's name goes down beside their vote, in public. No surprise items.
5. County motion The county seat, worked like a job. The Main Street deal proved the seat produces when it is used. It gets used.
6. My penCouncil voteCounty motionApplication The promise test, applied to me first. Every commitment I publish names its lever: my pen, a council vote, a county motion, or an application to another government. If a promise of mine ever arrives without its lever named, hold it against me.

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