Fort Frances Opposes Riding Expansion

Fort Frances town council is adding their voice in opposition to a rewrite of the Thunder Bay-Rainy River federal riding.

The Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission of Ontario proposes it expand and take in the southern portion of the Kenora Riding.

Councillor Doug Judson says this only continues the issue of having adequate representation.

“In that, we are very much outweighed by a large urban center to our east. I think that there is an argument to be made that the Commission should strongly consider whether effective representation for the north needs to take into account that urban-rural split,” says Judson.

Council approved a lengthy resolution that asks the Commission to consider a single riding for Thunder Bay to give more effective representation to the small and rural areas of the region.

Councillor Mike Behan says he would like to see a return to the former Kenora-Rainy River riding.

“I always thought that we were more aligned north-south in this area, with say Kenora and Dryden than we are east-west with Thunder Bay,” says Behan.

Behan adds the Rainy River district’s voices would be diminished with Kenora and Dryden being added to a larger riding.

Here is the full resolution

WHEREAS the Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission for Ontario (“Commission”) released its proposed redistribution of federal riding boundaries in August 2022;

WHEREAS Northern Ontario would lose a seat in the House of Commons under the proposed redistribution;

WHEREAS the previous redistribution caused the Rainy River District to be joined into a riding with the City of Thunder Bay;

WHEREAS the new proposed distribution intends to further combine the main municipal population centres of the current Kenora and Thunder Bay—Rainy River ridings, further eroding effective representation for the rural and outlying communities of the Rainy River and Kenora districts;

WHEREAS the current proposal has been criticized as impractical and unfair for northern communities by both current and former MPs from across Northern Ontario, from all 3 major political parties;

WHEREAS the proposed redistribution fails to recognize the economic, historic, and cultural distinctions across the region and the rural-urban population divide between Thunder Bay and smaller centres in the Northwest;

WHEREAS the Northern Policy Institute has conducted research which confirmed that the Kenora and Rainy River districts are in a distinct economic region from Thunder Bay; and

WHEREAS the Commission has called for written submissions from citizens and stakeholders on its proposed redistribution by September 25, 2022;

1. Council is concerned by the loss of northern representation in the proposed redistribution and is of the view that 10 seats ought to be reserved for the north to account for its geographic, economic, and social diversity;
2. Council is concerned that the Town of Fort Frances’ new proposed federal riding of Kenora—Thunder Bay—Rainy River fails to account for the vast geography of the region and the economic, historic, political, and demographic differences between the Kenora-Rainy River districts and the City of Thunder Bay;
3. Council is of the view that the current proposal creates boundaries for the purpose of adhering to a population formula without fully accounting for the unique geographic, economic, and cultural realities of northern communities and their different community interests;
4. Council is of the opinion that effective representation for the Northwest requires that travel times, Indigenous territorial boundaries, community history, provincial boundaries, and economic regions be reflected in federal electoral boundaries;
5. If the current 10 seats for Northern Ontario is not maintained, Council suggests that consideration be given by the Commission as to whether the City of Thunder Bay ought to be contained within a single riding in order to give more effective representation to rural and smaller communities in the region;
6. Council directs the administration to send a copy of this resolution to the Commission with a covering letter, by email (ON@redecoupage-federal-redistribution.ca); and
7. Council directs that a copy of this resolution be sent to:

      a. the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association;

      b. all municipalities in the Kenora and Rainy River districts; and

       c. the current MPs for Northwestern Ontario (eric.melillo@parl.gc.ca, patty.hajdu@parl.gc.ca, and marcus.powlowski@parl.gc.ca).

Judson says he is hoping other municipalities will follow Fort Frances’ lead and pass similar resolutions.

The Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission of Ontario will hold public meetings on the riding changes next month.