Kenneth Brown
of The Clarion

Deputy Mayor Ken Francis is the Saskatchewan Party’s candidate in an upcoming Kindersley byelection and he has yet to determine how long he will serve on council.

The deputy mayor was nominated to be the Sask. Party candidate on Jan. 8, and he will have to resign from town council if he is elected as the MLA for Kindersley.

The byelection date has not been announced but has to be held before March 1.

Wayne Gibson, the town’s manager of communications, said Francis is not legally required to resign his position on council until he is elected to another public office, so he would be able to continue as deputy mayor until such a time and it is allowed under provincial legislation.

He noted that Francis has the option to resign from council at any time prior to the byelection, but he does not have to resign unless he is elected. If the deputy mayor resigns at any time, the town will be required to hold a byelection to fill the council seat. It is not an election year for municipalities, so the seat will have to be filled, he said.

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Deputy Mayor Ken Francis

Mayor Rod Perkins is away on vacation and Francis said he wants to talk to the mayor before he makes any decisions about his future on council.

He said the mayor is expected to be back for the council meeting on Jan. 29, so he plans to approach him after the meeting.

Francis said the byelection will happen before March and the spring sitting of the Legislative Assembly starts in March, so there is not much time for him to get ready if he is elected as the MLA for Kindersley.

He noted that it would be a challenge to get his affairs in order in such a narrow window in time.

The deputy mayor said he would also be part of an election campaign in February, and the campaign could require a lot of his attention.

Given the circumstances, he said he is going to consider all of his options.

“I haven’t ruled out stepping down from the town before I absolutely have to,” Francis said, adding that he intends to continue in his role on council until after he talks to Perkins.

“We’re doing lots of planning on the campaign side, so we’re still feeling that out.”

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