After hours of recounting, Norfolk County’s Ward 4 race still came down to two names in a hat.
County Clerk William Tigert drew incumbent Chris Van Paassen’s name Thursday, selecting him to retain the council seat pending a formal declaration.
Van Paassen and challenger Jeni Lambert each received 858 votes in the October 26 municipal election.
Thursday’s recount left that result unchanged, triggering a provision in Ontario’s Municipal Elections Act that requires the clerk to choose the successful candidate by lot.
Before the draw, Tigert explained how it would work.
Tigert stepped out while the names were placed in the hat.
When he returned to make the draw, those in the room leaned in to hear the result.
Afterward, Lambert reflected on what it was like to reach the end of a race that had been unresolved since election night.
Van Paassen welcomed the chance to return to council.
He also spoke about whether he expects to hear from Lambert once the race is behind them.
The draw settled which name would come out of the hat, but both candidates said they would like to see a different way of breaking ties in future elections.
For Lambert, the issue goes beyond the outcome in Ward 4.
She says she plans to keep pressing for change, and the issue has already reached Queen’s Park.
Haldimand–Norfolk MPP Bobbi Ann Brady tabled a motion calling on the province to remove the tie-breaking provision.
Speaking in the legislature before the recount, she pointed to Norfolk’s race to explain why she wants the law changed.
The draw does not make the result official immediately.
Under the Act, eligible applicants have 15 days after the clerk announces the recount result to apply to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice for a judicial recount of disputed ballots.
If no application is filed, the clerk formally declares the successful candidate elected on the 16th day after the recount is completed.
