Eastern Ontario Wardens’ Caucus Announces Chair, Vice-Chair and Path Forward for 2025

KINGSTON, ON – January 14, 2025 – The Eastern Ontario Wardens’ Caucus (EOWC) has announced the acclamation of the 2025 EOWC Chair, Bonnie Clark (Warden of Peterborough County) and election of Vice-Chair, Steve Ferguson (Mayor of Prince Edward County). The election was held during the EOWC’s annual inaugural meeting on January 9 and 10, in the City of Kingston.

“It is an honour to lead as Chair of the Eastern Ontario Wardens’ Caucus (EOWC) for 2025,” states Bonnie Clark. “It is a critical time for our country, province and region to step up, and the EOWC remains ready to work and ready to grow. I look forward to working with my caucus colleagues in the year ahead to advance priorities of infrastructure, housing and health care on behalf of our 103 municipalities and residents across Eastern Ontario.”

As part of the 2025 inaugural meeting, the EOWC welcomed the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Paul Calandra, and Minister of Rural Affairs, Lisa Thompson, as well as a number of the region’s Members of Parliament (Cheryl Gallant, Michelle Ferreri, Shelby Kramp-Neuman), Members of Provincial Parliament (John Jordan, Ric Bresee, Tyler Allsopp, Ted Hsu). The meeting also emphasized EOWC partnerships with other organizations, with Representatives from the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, the Rural Ontario Municipal Association, the Eastern Ontario Mayors’ Caucus, the Eastern Ontario Regional Network, and the Eastern Ontario Leadership Council participating.

EOWC Priorities

The EOWC’s 2024-2027 strategic plan outlines a comprehensive roadmap, guiding its collective efforts to enhance the following priorities that are crucial for our member municipalities to thrive: infrastructure, housing and health care.

The EOWC remains Ready to Work and Ready to Grow. The EOWC is heading to Toronto for the Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA) Conference between January 19 to 21. We look forward to discussions around how we can partner with the Ontario Government given the social, economic and political challenges facing us ahead.