EDITOR'S NOTE: Apparently, Mayor Wannan filled out his financial statement about as well as we read it. The final total didn't reflect all the subtotals and, upon further examination of the form, we found he spent 2,177.19 on his campaign but this doesn't diminish the fact that he finished with the most votes of all candidates. Thank you to the readers who informed us of our mistake.
When all was said and done on Oct. 24, 2022 — election night — Elliot Lakers had elected a mayor and six councillors.
But as everyone knows, the story didn't end there.
On Jan. 7, 2023, Ontario Superior Court Justice Annalisa Rasaiah ordered mayor-elect Chris Patrie removed from his position and banned him from holding public office for no less than two years. The judge found him guilty of violating the Ontario Municipal Conflict of Interest Code by lobbying the council, mayor and staff to build a $30-million sports hub very close to a plaza owned by a corporation controlled by him and his wife.
That left Elliot Lake without a mayor for just over one year.
With 2,358 votes, the highest number of votes for a councillor, Andrew Wannan became the deputy mayor by custom when the new council was sworn in. He stepped in as acting mayor following Patrie's removal.
Unlike the first runner-up in a beauty pageant, Wannan did not have fewer votes than Patrie. Wannan, who didn't file his nomination papers until a day before the nominations closed, actually finished with far more votes than any other candidate for council or mayor.
Patrie secured 1,619 votes to win the mayor's seat, finishing 461 votes ahead of incumbent mayor Dan Marchisella's 1,158 votes. With his 2,358 votes, Wannan finished with 739 more than Patrie and 632 more than his closest-finishing council candidate, Charles Flintoff.
Wannan spent almost $2,177 on his campaign as compared to Patrie's $7,277.
The council candidate who spent the most (of those who filed their financial information) was Tammy Van Roon, who spent $2,793 and finished 11th of 17 candidates.
Patrie spent the most money on his successful campaign for mayor but it will be more than another 10 months until he will be eligible to hold public office.
When Wannan threw his hat in the ring for council, ElliotLakeToday asked him why he decided to run.
"I feel very strongly about my civic responsibility and duty, so I am motivated and determined to step up and offer myself as an option for the council," he said.
Voter turnout for election 2022 was 35.5 per cent, with 3,688 of the 10,382 people eligible voters casting their ballots.
Council has decided to appoint someone to the seat Wannan left vacant on council when he stepped over to take the mayor's seat.
At its last meeting, it eliminated the possibility of a by-election but has yet to decide if it will appoint the councillor from a list created by an open call for candidates, the list of candidates from the 2022 municipal election, or a direct appointment of council’s choosing
A decision on how council will appoint someone to fill the vacant seat is expected at the March 11 meeting.