My Letter to the Editor - Way deputy mayor is picked is fine

Today, my latest Letter to the Editor was published. It was a response to a letter published the previous day.

Way deputy mayor is picked is fine
Telegraph-Journal

I want to reply to the letter about revisiting the way the deputy mayor is chosen (May 27). The motion that was passed by the previous council: “11.6 - Position of Deputy Mayor On motion of Deputy Mayor Hooton, Seconded by Councillor Chase, resolved that the current system of electing the deputy mayor, which is the election of the councillor who receives the most votes in the municipal election, be maintained. Question being taken, the motion was carried.”

The motion does not say that ward candidates are not included. At-large candidates are the most likely to become Deputy Mayor because of the vast number of votes that they receive; however, the fact that Councillor Stephen Chase received more votes then the current mayor shows that this system does make sense.

The Deputy Mayor should be someone with large support throughout the city. Changing the system, as suggested by the letter writer, will only make things less democratic.

I support the current system, and I look forward to Coun. Stephen Chase as our deputy mayor.

Shawn Peterson
Saint John

Here is the letter I was responding to:

Revisit way deputy mayor is chosen
Telegraph-Journal

While the previous Saint John council passed a motion that would make the candidate with the most votes “deputy mayor” this decision seems to me to remain problematic to the point where I believe the newly elected council should revisit the issue with fresh eyes. What the previous council embraced as a solution neither seems fair or reasonable.

The idea that the position of deputy mayor should be chosen - due the sheer numbers - only from the pool of successful at-large candidates creates the impression that city council is comprised of two tiers. However, the ward system surely was never meant to introduce a hierarchy of councillors, with some having more claims to democratic legitimacy than others.

Why should it be the case that those running within a ward be excluded from being considered for the position of deputy mayor? A two-tiered council where basically only the at-large candidates contend for deputy mayor makes little democratic sense.

If the deputy mayor’s position were not going to be elected directly by the people according to the percentage of votes, then perhaps the councillors themselves should choose who gains this position. This would make the most sense in terms of promoting the idea that the council should make every effort to work together.

I strongly urge the newly elected council to revisit this question immediately and rescind the decision of the previous council in favour of a more democratic process by which the deputy mayor is chosen.

Charles Murphy
Saint John