United Counties of Prescott and Russell (UCPR) council is a step closer to possibly changing the term of office for the warden to two years.
The warden is the head of the council and is selected each year among the eight mayors who comprise the council. At a special UCPR council meeting on Wednesday, November 12, a resolution was adopted directing staff to prepare a report and a draft by-law to amend the term of the Warden of the Council of the United Counties of Prescott and Russell to two years, starting with the 2026–2030 term.
The adoption of the resolution follows a motion introduced to council in October by Russell Township Mayor Mike Tarnowski which led to a lengthy discussion among the mayors about the advantages and disadvantages of switching to a two-year warden’s term. The discussion on November 12 before the resolution was adopted, was much shorter.
Tarnowski’s motion to have the term changed to two years is based on his assessment that the political leadership of the UCPR had more continuity when Champlain Township Mayor Normand Riopel basically ended up serving as warden for two consecutive years in 2023 and 2024. Riopel returned to the role early in 2024 after former Russell Township Mayor Pierre Leroux, who had been selected as 2024 Warden, left elected municipal politics. Tarnowski was also appointed Russell Township Mayor and representative on UCPR Council around that time.
Tarnowski said that in his short time as a UCPR council member, he observed that there was stability when Champlain Township Mayor Riopel returned to the role. He said it provided efficiency in operations and greater stability in regional governance.
“It’s a practice in other counties as well,” Tarnowski remarked.
There are 10 other county governments in Ontario where the warden serves a two-year term. In Eastern Ontario, the warden serves for two years in the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, and in Hastings County.
“I think it’s a step forward,” Tarnowski said of the decision.
Chief Administrative Officer Stéphane Parisien raised the previously discussed idea of having the occupant of the warden’s position alternate between mayors from the eastern and western municipalities of the UCPR.
Casselman Mayor Geneviève Lajoie said that during previous discussions, she thought it had been fairly well established that wherever the warden is from was a matter of politics, and something that could not really be set in policy. However, Lajoie did say potential wardens should be selected based on their commitment to the region as a whole.
“I think it should be more, who’s willing to put the work in regionally and who has the understanding of regional initiatives,” Lajoie said.
She also said it is difficult for women to get elected and become warden and wants that challenge to be acknowledged.
“It’s not tokenism, it’s systematic reality,” Lajoie said.
The draft bylaw to change the UCPR Warden’s term to two years will be presented to council at its regular session on November 26. Under the Municipal Act, any changes to the term of office to take effect following the 2026 municipal election must be adopted before December 31, 2025.
