By Pepper Parr
September 2nd, 2025
BURLINGTON, ON
Bruce Leigh is a frequent commenter on the Gazette.
He recently said the following in response to an article we published on an individual who was expressing an interest in running for office. A link to that article appears below.
You quote a potential maybe candidate as saying:-
“I do think – as I said in our meeting – that our Representative Democracy is meant to elect representatives, not leaders.”
That was the original concept of our democracy. But with the advent of party politics at federal and provincial government levels the elected representative is above all chosen because of the party’s policy platform and so must toe that line whether or not the constituents like it or not
At municipal government level the councilor is the true representative not being party affiliated. The Mayor is the elected leader.
Kearns. “She does not take up fights on behalf of constituents if they do not align with her beliefs or more importantly to her, with her career path.”
I tend to agree with your maybe potential candidate in the case of Ward 2 Councilor Lisa Kearns. She does not take up fights on behalf of constituents if they do not align with her beliefs or more importantly to her, with her career path.
How representative is Focus Burlington of the city’s 190,000 residents? How many residents are signed up as members of Focus Burlington?
Just because a few residents get together and form a group and then become noisy that does not make them representative of residents as a whole. It’s noise should be no more valuable than a single individual’s noise.
In the article underneath a photo, there’s a caption that says “Delegations don’t feel they are heard”.
That feeling is probably there because the vibe coming back from City Council is that they’re doing what they are required to do (i.e listen to residents’ delegations) and then they will do what they want to do.
Delegates feel they have a valid argument or position and when it is not accepted they get upset and say they are not being heard.
But also delegates are like most humans. They feel they have a valid argument or position and when it is not accepted they get upset and say they are not being heard. Just because you or I get up and make a delegation which is then not accepted or acted up on by Council does not necessarily mean Council did not hear us.
Wayne’s comment here exemplifies this. “Note that when citizens speak up and see little to no adjustment from City Hall, apathy sets in.” Just because you take and voice an opinion does not make it the right position nor are you necessarily representative of the majority of residents
Wayne, you have options. Stand to be elected for office, or volunteer to work for someone standing that you can support,
Sharon, you want MMW and a majority of Council replaced. Easy to say. Have you identified who you would replace them with? Are you going to stand for election?
Standing on the sidelines whining is not an option if you really want to make change happen.
If the 2026 election turnout is a repeat of the 2022 election (26%) and the majority of Councilors are re-elected it would seem to say residents are not as bothered by decisions made at City Hall as you are.
Newslink:
respectfully I submit that you seem to be missing my point. In a democracy, citizens are not “whining” when they raise concerns — they are exercising the very right that elected officials are supposed to respect. Suggesting that the only valid way to be heard is to either run for office or wait until the next election is both dismissive and unhelpful.
Elected officials work for the community, not the other way around. Public input between elections is not optional — it’s the foundation of accountability. To brush off concerns as “standing on the sidelines” is a convenient way of avoiding responsibility, but it doesn’t change the fact that residents deserve to be heard, not patronized.
I was either very bad at explaining my position or you were equally bad at reading what I wrote.
I don’t think I suggested that unless a citizen runs for office or volunteers, their concerns don’t count. I was trying to suggest that if you really want something to happen vote for somebody who has the same position as yourself or stand for election yourself. I was also suggesting that standing on the sidelines whining is not likely to get you the results you want.
I don’t think I ever expressed the view that the only legitimate voices are those that sit on Council. But council is where decisions are made!
If you delegate and make an argument that is then not taken up by Council it does not necessarily mean your argument has been dismissed or ignored or that you have not been listened to.
What if there was another delegate making an argument for a position diametrically opposed to yours. And Council determines to take action more in line with your position than the other delegate’s. Does that mean you were listened to and the other delegate was not listened to but was dismissed or ignored. Obviously not!
Just because someone delegates a position, a point of view, it does not make it representative of all or even a large percentage of residents. You delegate as a single resident.
Groups like Focus Burlington, BRAG, ECOB purport to speak on behalf of disillusioned residents. They are unelected! How many members do they have? Is that information ever divulged?
By the way, I am as frustrated as it’s seems many others are with my councilor. But I am just as frustrated with some of my fellow residents who are living in yesteryear. Regrettably the Premier has put an end to municipalities’ planning self-determination. So if you don’t like what has happened to our downtown (high rises) and will continue to happen, and you voted for the Provincial Conservatives, you only have yourself to blame.
some good points Bruce, especially about the lack of participation in the election process however ….
It’s a mistake to suggest that unless a citizen runs for office, or volunteers, their concerns don’t count. That’s not how democracy works. Citizens are supposed to speak up, and elected officials are supposed to listen — not dismiss, ignore, or rubber-stamp.
When residents raise issues and see little to no change, the fault doesn’t lie with them for “not running for office.” The fault lies with a council that is more focused on managing optics and reelection than on engaging meaningfully with the people they represent.
Frankly, your view that the only legitimate voices are those who sit in council chambers is far too narrow — and exactly the kind of thinking that shuts people out of the process. Democracy isn’t a private club for politicians and their supporters; it’s a public trust.
Citizens have every right to demand better, whether you find that inconvenient or not.