Ward 3 councillor Steve Bjorkman has been appointed as the new deputy mayor of Essex.
Council met for a special meeting Monday night to fill the seat left vacant by Richard Meloche who was appointed to the mayor's chair last week.
The shift in roles began when former mayor Larry Snively resigned after pleading guilty to a charge under the Municipal Elections Act.
Bjorkman says experience is needed, and with nearly two terms of council under his belt, he's the right person for the job.
"Anything could happen to our strong mayor next week and the deputy mayor needs to step in and become the mayor and represent the town to developers, to investors. So to me, it still needs to be somebody who's been part of this council. We need to ensure to stay on track for the rest of these following nine to 10 months."
He says he considers himself a bit of a peacemaker on council.
"I believe I've shown my ability to bring people together, to work with those with opposing viewpoints and to create consensus and to continue working for the betterment of our community. Sometimes that's not possible and I have shown I can go down in defeat and still support the decision of council."
Bjorkman says he plays close attention to Essex County council issues and he's ready to sit around that table as well.
"There are still a number of issues this council is going to deal with at the county level in the next nine months that will require us to work together and make important decisions. Organics, service sharing, provincial supplements to county programs, Windsor-Essex County Housing Corp. proposals. I would look forward to leading these issues on our town's behalf."
Councillor Sherry Bondy was nominated to fill the deputy mayor's role as well, but only received two votes from council.
With Bjorkman's Ward 3 seat now empty, council will once again hold a special meeting February 7 at 6pm to go over options to fill the vacancy.
Council ruled out calling a by-election, but must now decide to appoint or take applications from the public.