# Municipal government of King, Ontario

The municipal government of King, Ontario consists of the mayor and six councillors who are elected to office during the municipal elections in Ontario or who are acclaimed to office because their candidacy is unopposed. It also includes civic staff responsible for the operational affairs of the township.

## Wards

A ward system was proposed by William Hodgson during a speech he delivered at the township's electoral nomination meeting on 20 November 1961.
The municipality is subdivided into six geopolitical wards. Ward 1 encompasses the region east of Keele Street and west of Bathurst Street, from the township's southern boundary to 19th Sideroad in the north. This includes the eastern portion of King City, and the communities of Eversley, Snowball, and Temperanceville. Ward 2 extends from Highway 400 in the east to 10th concession in the west, from the township's southern boundary to 15th sideroad in the north. It includes the communities of King Creek, Laskay, Nobleton, and Strange. Ward 3 covers all the western portion of the township, from its western border to the 10th concession, and also all the area east of Highway 400 that lies north of the 15th Sideroad and south of the 18th Sideroad. The communities of Hammertown, Happy Valley, Holly Park, Linton, and New Scotland are located in ward 3.
Ward 4 consists of the area east of the 10th concession and west of Highway 400, north of the 18th sideroad, and south the northern boundary of the township at its western end and of Highway 9 at its eastern end. It includes the communities of Lloydtown, Pottageville, and Schomberg. Ward 5 extends from the township's southern boundary to 19th Sideroad in the north, between Highway 400 in the west and Keele Street in the east. The western portion of King City and the communities of Kettleby and Kinghorn are located in ward 5. The northeastern portion of the township, north of Highway 9 west of Highway 400, and north of the 19th Sideroad east of Highway 400, is in ward 6. It includes the communities of Ansnorveldt and Glenville.

## Council

The council of the township includes the mayor and six councillors. The mayor is Steve Pelligrini, and the councillors are Jordan Cescolini (ward 1), David Boyd (ward 2), Jakob Schneider (ward 3), Bill Cober (ward 4), Debbie Schaefer (ward 5), and Avia Eek (ward 6).
Upon election, the mayor automatically becomes a councillor for York Regional Council, its only representative from King. This automatic representation of an elected individual to a second council is known as a double direct election.

## Elections

During municipal elections, electors cast ballots for candidate councillors and school board trustees representing their ward. Each year, the municipal government sets aside approximately $30,000 of revenues to allocate toward the cost of the municipal election.
In the 1800s, many elections were resolved by acclamation as candidates often had no opposition; the Newmarket Era issue of 16 December 1887 stated that "King Township usually elects by acclamation" when discussing the impending election of January 1888 for which the reeve and 3rd deputy reeve were acclaimed.
In 1873, a third deputy reeve was added to King Council as a result of a population increase, and specifically the number of properties on the tax roll. In the December 1962 municipal election, the electorate voted in favour of increasing councillor terms from one year to two years.
The creation of the Regional Municipality of York and the reorganization of its constituent municipalities in 1971 resulted in the abolition of the positions of reeve and deputy reeve, and created the position of mayor.
In 1910, the township electorate rejected a local option, voting in favour of the measure 741–515 but short of attaining the required 60% overall vote to pass the measure by 13 votes. In 1912, there was a 126–34 vote in favour of a local option.
In the late 1930s, the council passed an election bylaw under which terms councillors elected or acclaimed to office would hold that office for two years. It first applied to the December 1940 election, for which no candidate was opposed and all were elected by acclamation.

### Councillors

Council representatives for Township of King († denotes candidate was acclaimed to office) :
| Year | Reeve | 1st Deputy Reeve | 2nd Deputy Reeve | 3rd Deputy Reeve | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor |
| December 1854 | George Hughes | | | | | N/A | N/A |
| December 1858 | John D. Phillips | William Moore | Arthur Armstrong | J. Ireland | James P. Wells | N/A | N/A |
| December 1859 | James P. Wells | Andrew Davis | William Moore | R. Machell | Arthur Armstrong | N/A | N/A |
| December 1860 | James P. Wells$^†$ | Andrew Davis$^†$ | William Moore$^†$ | Albert Webb | Arthur Armstrong | N/A | N/A |
| December 1861 | James P. Wells | Andrew Davis | Albert Webb | William Moore | Alexander Thompson | N/A | - |
| December 1862 | James P. Wells | Albert Webb | | | | N/A | N/A |
| December 1867 | Joseph Stokes$^†$ | Machell | Thompson | | | N/A | N/A |
| December 1869 | Albert Webb$^†$ | William Munsie | Joel Phillips | Arthur Armstrong | Andrew Davis | James Bell | William Proctor |
| December 1870 | William Munsie | Joel Phillips | John D. Phillips | William Bell | James Rogers | N/A | N/A |
| December 1871 | William Munsie$^†$ | Joel Phillips$^†$ | John D. Phillips$^†$ | | | N/A | N/A |
| January 1873 | William Munsie | Joel Phillips | James Rogers | James Bell | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| January 1874 | John D. Phillips$^†$ | Joseph Stokes | James Rogers | Charles Irwin | Arthur Armstrong | N/A | N/A |
| December 1874 | John D. Phillips | James C. Stokes | Charles Hambly | Charles Irwin | Arthur Armstrong | N/A | N/A |
| January 1876 | Joseph Stokes | James C. Stokes$^†$ | Charles Hambly$^†$ | Charles Irwin$^†$ | Arthur Armstrong$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| December 1876 | Joseph Stokes$^†$ | James C. Stokes$^†$ | Charles Hambly$^†$ | Arthur Armstrong$^†$ | Elihu Davis$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| December 1877 | Joseph Stokes | James C. Stokes | Charles Hambly | Arthur Armstrong | Elihu Davis | N/A | N/A |
| December 1878 | Joseph Stokes | James C. Stokes | Charles Hambly | Arthur Armstrong | Elihu Davis | N/A | N/A |
| December 1879 | Joseph Stokes$^†$ | James C. Stokes$^†$ | Charles Hambly$^†$ | Arthur Armstrong$^†$ | Elihu Davis$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| December 1880 | Joseph Stokes$^†$ | James C. Stokes$^†$ | Charles Hambly$^†$ | Arthur Armstrong$^†$ | Elihu Davis$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| January 1882 | Joseph Stokes | Charles Hambly | Charles Irwin | Elihu Davis | Thomas Wilson | N/A | N/A |
| January 1883 | Elihu Davis$^†$ | Charles Irwin$^†$ | Thomas Wilson$^†$ | Michael J. O'Neil$^†$ | Robert Norman$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| December 1883 | Elihu Davis | Charles Irwin | Michael J. O'Neil | Robert Norman | John Black | N/A | N/A |
| December 1884 | Elihu Davis$^†$ | Charles Irwin$^†$ | Michael J. O'Neil$^†$ | Robert Norman$^†$ | John Black$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| January 1886 | Elihu Davis$^†$ | Charles Irwin | James Cherry | Robert Norman$^†$ | John Black | N/A | N/A |
| January 1887 | Robert Norman$^†$ | John H. Ross | James Cherry | John Black | Stephen W. Armitage$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| January 1888 | Robert Norman$^†$ | John H. Ross | Archibald Campbell | John Black$^†$ | Stephen W. Armitage | N/A | N/A |
| January 1889 | James O. Stokes | John H. Ross$^†$ | Archibald Campbell$^†$ | Stephen W. Armitage | Arthur Armstrong | N/A | N/A |
| January 1890 | James O. Stokes$^†$ | John H. Ross$^†$ | Archibald Campbell$^†$ | Stephen W. Armitage$^†$ | Arthur Armstrong$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| January 1891 | James O. Stokes | Archibald Campbell$^†$ | Stephen W. Armitage$^†$ | Simeon Lemon | James Cherry | N/A | N/A |
| December 1891 | James O. Stokes$^†$ | Archibald Campbell$^†$ | Stephen W. Armitage$^†$ | Simeon Lemon$^†$ | James Cherry$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| January 1893 | James C. Stokes | A. McCallum | Robert McCutcheon | Simeon Lemon | James Cherry | N/A | N/A |
| January 1894 | James C. Stokes$^†$ | A. McCallum$^†$ | Robert McCutcheon$^†$ | Simeon Lemon$^†$ | James Cherry$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| January 1895 | James C. Stokes$^†$ | A. McCallum | Robert McCutcheon | Simeon Lemon | James Cherry$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| January 1896 | Robert Norman | A. McCallum$^†$ | Robert McCutcheon$^†$ | Simeon Lemon | James Cherry$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| January 1897 | James Cherry | Robert McCutcheon$^†$ | Stephen W. Armitage | John Hambly | C.H. Legge | N/A | N/A |
| Year | Reeve | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor |
| January 1899 | Simeon Lemon$^†$ | C.H Legge | Burns | Davis | Gallagher | N/A | N/A |
| January 1900 | Simeon Lemon | C.H. Legge | Robert Gallagher | J.W. Burns | Joseph Rogers | N/A | N/A |
| January 1901 | Simeon Lemon | J.W. Burns | J.W Crossley | Robert Gallagher | Joseph Rogers | N/A | N/A |
| January 1902 | J.W Crossley | Joseph Rogers | H.F. Legge | R.W. Phillips | Stephen W. Armitage | N/A | N/A |
| January 1903 | T.H. Legge | J.W. Larkin | R.W. Phillips | Stephen W. Armitage | Alexander McMurchy | N/A | N/A |
| January 1905 | T.H. Legge | R.W. Phillips | Stephen W. Armitage | Alexander McMurchy | John Wells | N/A | N/A |
| January 1906 | T.H. Legge | Alexander McMurchy | Norman | Deacon | Burns | N/A | N/A |
| January 1907 | T.H. Legge | Alexander McMurchy$^†$ | R.W. Phillips | William Duggan | A.C. Wells | N/A | N/A |
| January 1908 | John Armstrong | Alexander McMurchy$^†$ | Burns | Deacon | R.W. Phillips | N/A | N/A |
| January 1909 | Alexander McMurchy$^†$ | R.W. Phillips$^†$ | William Duggan | A.C. Wells | Carley | N/A | N/A |
| January 1910 | Alexander McMurchy | R.W. Phillips | Lemon | A.C. Wells | William Duggan | N/A | N/A |
| January 1912 | Alexander McMurchy | William J. Wells | S. Lemon | John A. Watson | B. McCabe | N/A | N/A |
| January 1913 | Alexander McMurchy$^†$ | William J. Wells | Cornelius F. McCabe | J. A. Watson | Lemon | N/A | N/A |
| January 1915 | | John A. Watson | | | | N/A | N/A |
| January 1916 | William J. Wells$^†$ | Cornelius F. McCabe | T.A. McCutcheon | Edward J. Kaake | Aaron Campbell | N/A | N/A |
| January 1917 | William J. Wells$^†$ | Cornelius F. McCabe | T.A. McCutcheon | Edward J. Kaake | Aaron Campbell | N/A | N/A |
| January 1918 | William J. Wells | Arthur McCutcheon | Edward J. Kaake$^†$ | John L. Dolson$^†$ | Thomas McMurchy$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| January 1919 | William J. Wells | Arthur McCutcheon$^†$ | Thomas McMurchy | John L. Dolson | Edward J. Kaake | N/A | N/A |
| January 1920 | Arthur McCutcheon | Thomas McMurchy | John A. Wilkie | E. Milton Legge | Wesley H. Walls | N/A | N/A |
| January 1921 | Arthur McCutcheon$^†$ | John L. Dolson | E. Milton Legge | John A. Wilkie | Wesley H. Walls | N/A | N/A |
| January 1922 | Alexander McMurchy | Leslie Wells | Frank A. Egan | Calvin Doan | John J. Edwards | N/A | N/A |
| January 1923 | Alexander McMurchy | E. Milton Legge | Thomas McMurchy | Joseph Duggan | Frank A. Egan | N/A | N/A |
| January 1924 | Alexander McMurchy | E. Milton Legge | Thomas McMurchy | Joseph Duggan | A.B. Wells | N/A | N/A |
| January 1926 | Alexander McMurchy | Thomas McMurchy | Joseph Duggan$^†$ | Elton A. Armstrong | Frank A. Egan | N/A | N/A |
| January 1927 | Alexander McMurchy | Thomas McMurchy$^†$ | Joseph Duggan$^†$ | Elton A. Armstrong | Frank A. Egan | N/A | N/A |
| January 1928 | E. Milton Legge | Elton A. Armstrong | Frank A. Egan | Norman D. McMurchy | J.P. Jefferson | N/A | N/A |
| January 1931 | E. Milton Legge | Norman D. McMurchy | J.P. Jefferson | Geoffrey J. Fox | Cameron E. Walkington | N/A | N/A |
| Year | Reeve | Deputy Reeve | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor |
| 1933 | Norman D. MacMurchy | J.P. Jefferson | John S. Lawson | Thomas MacMurchy | Geoffrey J. Fox | N/A | N/A |
| 1935 | Norman D. MacMurchy | J.P. Jefferson | Lorne B. Goodfellow | John S. Lawson | Geoffrey J. Fox | N/A | N/A |
| 1936 | J.P. Jefferson | John S. Lawson | Lorne B. Goodfellow | Thomas McMurchy | Cameron E. Walkington | N/A | N/A |
| 1937 | J.P. Jefferson | Cameron E. Walkington | Thomas McMurchy | Lorne B. Goodfellow | E. Milton Legge | N/A | N/A |
| 1938 | J.P. Jefferson | | Burnel Graham | | | N/A | N/A |
| 1938 | | | Burnel Graham | | | N/A | N/A |
| 1939 | Thomas McMurchy | | Burnel Graham | | William E. Barker | N/A | N/A |
| December 1940 | Thomas McMurchy | Lorne B. Goodfellow | Cameron Walkington | E. Milton Legge | William E. Barker | Victor Marchant | N/A, |
| 1949 | Elton Armstrong | T. Arthur McCutcheon | | | | N/A | N/A |
| 1950 | Elton Armstrong | T. Arthur McCutcheon | | | | N/A | N/A |
| 1951 | Elton Armstrong | T. Arthur McCutcheon | | | Russell Snyder | N/A | N/A |
| December 1952 | Elton Armstrong$^†$ | William Hodgson | Wilfred Aitchison | Douglas Wellesley | William Kehoe | N/A | N/A |
| December 1953 | Elton Armstrong$^†$ | William Hodgson$^†$ | Wilfred Aitchison$^†$ | William Kehoe$^†$ | Douglas Wellesley$^†$ | N/A | N/A |
| December 1954 | Elton Armstrong$^†$ | William Hodgson | Wilfred Aitchison | William Kehoe | Raymond Jennings | N/A | N/A |
| December 1955 | William Hodgson | Wilfred Aitchison | Raymond Jennings | Douglas Wellesley | Douglas Hutchins | N/A | N/A |
| 1956 | William Hodgson | | | | | N/A | N/A |
| 1957 | William Hodgson | | | | | N/A | N/A |
| 1958 | William Hodgson | | | | | N/A | N/A |
| 1959 | William Hodgson | Norman D. MacMurchy | Jack C. Rouble | Blyth J. Langdon | Gordon Cook | N/A | N/A |
| 1960 | William Hodgson | | Gordon Cook | | | N/A | N/A |
| 1961 | William Hodgson | Norman D. MacMurchy | Gordon Cook | Jack C. Rouble | William Curran | N/A | N/A |
| 1962 | Raymond Jennings | Gordon Cook | William Curran | Kenneth MacTaggart | Jack C. Rouble | N/A | N/A |
| 1965 | Gordon Cook | | | | | N/A | N/A |
| 1967 | Gordon Cook$^†$ | Kenneth MacTaggart | Ernest F. Crossland | Cyril Flinders | Gordon Rowe | N/A | N/A |
| 1969 | Gordon Cook$^†$ | Kenneth MacTaggart | Margaret Britnell | | | N/A | N/A |
| Year | Mayor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor |
| 1971 | Kenneth Mactaggart | Donald Findlay | Len Osin | Ben Rough | Murray Sheardown | Jack van Lyuk | Roy Wilson |
| 1972 | Margaret Britnell | | | | | | |
| 1976 | Margaret Britnell | | | | | | |
| 1978 | Margaret Britnell | | | | | | |
| 1980 | | | | | | | |
| 1982 | | | | | | | |
| Year | Mayor | Ward 1 | Ward 2 | Ward 3 | Ward 4 | Ward 5 | Ward 6 |
| 1985 | | | | | | Margaret Britnell | |
| 1988 | Margaret Britnell | | | | | | |
| 1991 | Margaret Britnell | Margaret Black | | | | | |
| 1994 | Margaret Black | | | Linda Pabst | | Margaret Britnell | |
| 1997 | Margaret Black | | | Linda Pabst | | | |
| 2000 | Margaret Black | Steve Pellegrini | | Linda Pabst | | | |
| 2003 | Margaret Black | Steve Pellegrini | | Linda Pabst | | | |
| 2006 | Margaret Black | Cleve Mortelliti | Jeff Laidlaw | Linda Pabst | Bill Cober | Jane Underhill | Jack Rupke |
| 2010 | Steve Pellegrini | Cleve Mortelliti$^†$ | Peter Grandilli | Linda Pabst | Bill Cober | Debbie Schaefer | Avia Eek |
| 2014 | Steve Pellegrini$^†$ | Cleve Mortelliti$^†$ | Dave Boyd | Linda Pabst | Bill Cober | Debbie Schaefer | Avia Eek |
| 2018 | Steve Pellegrini$^†$ | Jordan Cescolini | David Boyd | Jakob Schneider | Bill Cober | Debbie Schaefer | Avia Eek |
Voter turnout was 45% for the 2010 election and 33% for the 2014 election.
For the 2014 municipal elections, the mayor Steve Pellegrini and ward 1 councillor Cleve Mortelliti are acclaimed.

### School board trustees

School board trustees are elected for four school boards operating in King. An elector may cast a ballot for a candidate trustee for one of those school boards, determined by the "Direction of School Support" associated with the elector's municipal property tax statement per Section 6 of the provincial Assessment Act. Public school trustees represent the York Region District School Board (YRDSB) or the French immersion board Conseil Scolaire Viamonde (CSV). Separate public school trustees represent the York Catholic District School Board (YCDSB) or the French immersion Conseil scolaire de district catholique Centre-Sud (CSDCCS).
The elected trustee of the YRDSB represents all wards in King and Aurora. The schools represented in King by this trustee are King City Secondary School, King City Public School, Kettleby Public School, Nobleton Public School, and Schomberg Public School.
The elected trustee of the YCDSB represents all wards in King, Aurora, and Whitchurch–Stouffville. The schools represented in King by this trustee are Holy Name Catholic Elementary School in King City, St. Mary Catholic Elementary School in Nobleton, and St. Patrick Catholic Elementary School in Schomberg.
School board representatives for Township of King († denotes candidate was acclaimed to office) :
| Year | Public | Public | Public separate | Public separate |
| Year | YRDSB | CSV | YCDSB | CSDCCS |
| 2010 | Gord Kerr | René Laurin | Elizabeth Crowe$^†$ | Yves Lévesque$^†$ |
| 2014 | Peter Adams-Luchowki | François Guérin | Elizabeth Crowe | Caroline Bourret |
Gord Kerr was elected as the trustee for the YRDSB in 2010. He resigned from office in 2012, and was replaced by Peter Adams-Luchowki.

## Municipal office

In 1952, the township's municipal office was located in Nobleton. In 1956, council purchased land west of Highway 400 on which to construct a municipal office building.
The Township offices were moved to the King City Plaza, a strip mall purchased by the municipal government in the 1990s which also has several business tenants. In 2013, the township purchased the disused former Holy Name Catholic Elementary School building and adjacent 10 acres (40,000 m$^2$) of land from the York Catholic District School Board for $2.95 million. In 2016, township planning staff announced that the 360 square metres (3,900 sq ft) school building would be redesigned for use as office space for the township, for community and non-profit groups, and to house a satellite office for the York Regional Police. In May 2016, the Police Services Board of York Regional Police approved the King City substation and announced that a 20-year lease would be executed for use of about 280 square metres (3,000 sq ft) of space in the building.
The school building was demolished during mid 2016. In June 2016, township staff announced the construction of a 4,050 square metres (43,600 sq ft) structure on the site at a cost of about $15 million, updated to 4,150 square metres (44,700 sq ft) and $21.5 million in late 2016. Of that cost, $13.1 million was for construction, and the remainder for associated charges, including moving municipal staff from the previous offices. It includes a 6,000 square feet (560 m$^2$) public-use gymnasium. The capital project was partially financed by selling the strip mall for $10.75 million, with the remainder obtained from a $4 million debenture, $4.5 million from the infrastructure reserve fund, $1.5 million from development charges, and a $1 million capital contribution from the Regional Municipality of York. The facility has a geothermal heat pump system, and charging stations for electric vehicles. The former strip mall was demolished in January 2022.
In December 2018, the new municipal building was opened for the inaugural session of a new council following the 2018 municipal elections. The preceding council had approved the $40,000 purchase of Steel Gorgeous, an iron horse sculpture created by Kendall McCulloch, for installation at the municipal office. The sculpture had been lent by the artist to Caledon Equestrian Park in Palgrave for the equestrian events during the 2015 Pan American Games.