Recount confirms Beach's Ward 1 win

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DARRYL KNIGHT The Standard

UXBRIDGE: Pam Beach was declared the winner of the race to become Uxbridge’s Ward 1 Councillor for a second time last week, as the results of a recount held up the original decision in the recent municipal election.

The recount was conducted at Uxbridge Town Hall on Tuesday, Nov. 18 - and as Township Clerk Debbie Leroux predicted prior to the recount taking place - the results were exactly the same as on Election Day with Beach winning by 22 votes over longtime Councillor Bev Northeast, who had represented the ward since 1991.

The process lasted approximately three hours and it involved several members of the township’s staff to undertake. When the machines were done tabulating the votes, there was no change among the 1,206 total ballots cast in Ward 1. Ms. Beach remained the winner with 531 votes, followed by Ms. Northeast with 509, Blair Emmerson took 152 votes and a further 16 ballots were rejected.

Ms. Northeast explained following the revealing of the results that she plans to remain active in the community, and plans to take over as Chair of the Ward 1 Rate Payers Association. The position should enable her to continue her crusade against truck traffic in Ward 1, as well as other community projects.

On Monday, Dec. 1, Ms. Beach and the rest of the newly-elected council will be sworn into their positions at a special inaugural meeting of council, which is slated to begin at 7 p.m.

Ward 4 Councillor Fred Bryan is the only other new face behind the bench, with Mayor Gerri Lynn O’Connor, Regional Councillor Jack Ballinger, Pat Molloy (Ward 2), Pat Mikuse (Ward 3) and Gord Highet (Ward 5) returning to their positions on council.

“There is so much to be accomplished over the next four years,” Ms. Beach told The Standard. “I’m excited to be representing the entire township, but my first allegiance is to the residents of Ward 1.”