Strong Mayor Powers: The Promise of Efficiency, The Threat to Democracy

Abstract

This paper examines the outcomes and impacts of Strong Mayor powers and their role in advancing provincial priorities in Ontario. Over recent years, the province’s largest and fastest-growing municipalities have adopted these powers, granting mayors greater authority to implement priorities, manage administration, and oversee budgets, with a primary focus on addressing the housing crisis. While Strong Mayor powers may help advance provincial housing objectives by streamlining decision-making, they can also produce long-term negative effects, including diminished public trust, strained council relationships, and a loss of professional expertise among municipal staff, challenging the balance between effective governance and transparent decision-making. Using a mixed-methods approach, the study combined quantitative data on the relationship between Strong Mayor powers, housing target achievements, and development approval timelines with qualitative case studies of three municipalities. Findings indicate a positive relationship between Strong Mayor powers and provincial housing goals, though causation cannot be assumed, and other factors may contribute. Short-term effects include more efficient decision-making, while long-term effects may involve reduced public confidence and weakened council-staff dynamics. Limitations include data validity concerns, potential confounding variables, and the short timeframe since implementation. Further long-term research is recommended.