Burlington's mayor has named Ward 1 Councillor Kelvin Galbraith to stand in for her in an emergency until the end of 2027, with Ward 6 Councillor Angelo Bentivegna as his backup.
Galbraith and Bentivegna are the only two ward councillors returning on the 2026-2030 council. Both are City and Regional Councillors, meaning they sit on both Burlington council and Halton regional council. The other four wards elected newcomers: Sean Campbell in Ward 2, Mark Carr in Ward 3, Olivia Duke in Ward 4 and Alex Don in Ward 5.
In an emergency, Burlington's head of council can declare an emergency in all or part of the city and make the lawful orders needed to carry out the city's emergency plan and protect residents' health, safety, welfare and property. If the mayor is unavailable, that job falls to Galbraith.
The appointments are set out in Mayor's Office report MO-03-26, which asks council only to receive it for information, so councillors aren't being asked to approve them. Galbraith also becomes Deputy Mayor for Business and Red Tape Reduction, and Bentivegna Deputy Mayor for Recreation and Community Services. Portfolios for the four new members will be considered after their first year. [Figure row fix: Ceremonial deputy mayor, December | Bentivegna | Galbraith]
| Role | Councillor | Alternate |
|---|---|---|
| Deputy Mayor for Emergency (to end of 2027) | Galbraith | Bentivegna |
| Deputy Mayor for Business and Red Tape Reduction | Galbraith | — |
| Deputy Mayor for Recreation and Community Services | Bentivegna | — |
| Ceremonial deputy mayor, December | Bentivegna | — |
| Committee of the Whole chair, January | Galbraith | — |
| Committee of the Whole chair, February | Bentivegna | — |
The pair also take turns chairing Committee of the Whole, the meeting where all of council debates items before they go to a final vote. The mayor chairs the first one, on Dec. 7/8, before the returning councillors take over in the new year.
The new council will be sworn in at its inaugural meeting on Monday, Nov. 16 at 6:30 p.m. at the Burlington Performing Arts Centre, 440 Locust St., the city says. Councillors' appointments to boards and committees will be shared at the Dec. 8 Committee of the Whole and finalized at the December council meeting, and a review of the city's advisory committees is due back with recommendations in January 2027.
