Had the COVID-19 pandemic not happened, residents in Windsor's Ward 7 would have voted in a new city councillor a week ago.
Instead, the ward has been without representation on city council for eight months and counting.
The city postponed the byelection when it declared a state of emergency in March, and the 12 candidates for the job had to suspend their campaigns. Seven weeks later, there is no indication when residents in the east end ward will get to vote.
That has not sat well with one candidate, Howard Weeks. He is floating the idea of holding what he calls a "virtual election."
"Not only mail-in voting but also televised candidate profiles, televised candidates' debates," he explained.
He proposed the profiles and debates could air on the community access channel, YourTV. The debates, at least two of them, would be similar in format to city council meetings recently held virtually. Enhanced candidate profiles, he proposed, would be featured on the city's website.
However, Windsor's manager of elections and records, Terri Knight-Lepain, said that could violate the Municipal Elections Act. She said the rules are specific that while the city must facilitate the vote, it can not appear to be campaigning on behalf of candidates, and mail-in balloting would not work either. The byelection will have to use paper ballots cast at polling stations.
"The Municipal Elections Act clearly states in section 65-3 that byelections shall be conducted as far as possible in the same way as regular elections," she explained. "Council would have needed to pass new bylaws and new resolutions in order to enact new voting measures."
Weeks is running against Igor Dzaic, Farah El-Hajj, Michelle Gajewski, Jeewan Gill, Barb Holland, Ernie Lamont, Greg Lemay, Michael Malott, Angelo Marignani, Therese Papineau, and Albert Saba for the seat.
