County Council will be reduced from 32 members to 17 members beginning with the 2026-2030 Council term. This will comprise of the Mayors of the County’s 16 member municipalities and an appointed Head of Council. This is one of the major governance changes required under provincial legislation.

The Warden position itself is not being eliminated, but the title will change from “Warden” to “County Chair”. The change will take effect at the start of the next Council term on November 15, 2026. The title change itself does not reflect a change in responsibilities. The County Chair will still be the “Head of Council” as defined in the Municipal Act.

Council previously directed staff to pursue the title change if the Province moved to an appointed Head of Council model. The Province has since confirmed its intent to appoint the Head of Council for the next term, which prompted the recommendation to formally adopt the title County Chair.

The Province intends to appoint the County Chair through a provincial recruitment process, and applications were open in early July for eligible applicants. The Province is expected to make an announcement about who will serve as County Chair shortly following the upcoming municipal election on October 26, 2026. Exact timing has not been shared to-date.

Yes. Beginning with the next term of Council, the County Chair position will be a full-time Head of Council role with no lower-tier responsibilities.

The Deputy Warden position is being eliminated and will no longer exist under the upcoming governance structure. Instead of a Deputy Warden, in the absence of the County Chair, the Committee of the Whole Business Section Chairs will chair meetings in the following order: Performance Management Chair, Human Services Chair, Corporate Services Chair.

Yes, the County will host an Inaugural meeting on December 8, 2026 at 1 p.m.

The meeting will have a revised format and purpose, focusing on swearing in of the 16 Members of County Council and the new appointed County of Simcoe Chair. 

The Province has added the County of Simcoe to the list of municipalities whose Head of Council will have Strong Mayor/Chair Powers. These powers are established through provincial legislation and provide the County Chair with specific authorities and responsibilities that differ from the traditional governance model.
The powers include the ability to:

• Appoint the Chief Administrative Officer
• Hire or dismiss certain division heads and make changes to the County’s organizational structure, subject to applicable legislation, employment contracts and collective agreements
• Create certain Committees of Council, assign their functions and appoint their Chairs and Vice-chairs
• Bring matters forward for Council’s consideration where the County Chair believes doing so could advance a prescribed provincial priority
• Propose certain By-laws related to prescribed provincial priorities
• Veto certain By-laws that the County Chair believes could interfere with a prescribed provincial priority
• Direct staff in writing to undertake work related to the exercise of the County Chair’s additional statutory powers
• Propose the County’s annual budget under the provincially prescribed Strong Chair budget process

Certain Strong Chair Powers may only be used where the County Chair believes their use could advance or prevent interference with, priorities prescribed by the Province.

The Province’s current priorities include:
• Building 1.5 million new homes by December 31, 2031
• Constructing and maintaining infrastructure that supports housing, including transit, roads, utilities and municipal servicing

Not every Strong Chair Power is tied to these priorities.

No. County Council will continue to exercise the decision-making authorities assigned to it under provincial legislation.

Strong Chair Powers change how certain matters may be initiated, administered or reconsidered, but County Council remains the County’s primary decision-making body.

For example, Council may:
• Amend the budget proposed by the County Chair
• Override certain Chair vetoes with a two-thirds vote of all Council members
• Vote on By-laws proposed by the County Chair under the provincial-priority provisions. A By-law proposed through that process may pass with the support of more than one-third of all Council members

Most governance changes will take effect with the beginning of the 2026-2030 Council term on November 15, 2026. The current Council structure and Warden title remain in effect until then.

These changes are consistent with governance reforms being introduced elsewhere in Ontario. While each municipality’s governance structure remains unique, the changes position the County alongside other large regional and upper-tier municipalities that are adapting their governance models to address increasing service demands, population growth, housing needs, and infrastructure priorities.