Kevin Ashe has been appointed Durham Regional Chair, putting Pickering’s mayor at the head of regional council under Ontario’s new appointment system.
Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Rob Flack announced the appointment on November 10, alongside seven other heads of upper-tier municipal councils. For Durham residents, the announcement confirms who will lead regional council as the next municipal term approaches.
The provincial rules allow Ashe to continue as Pickering’s mayor while carrying out the regional chair’s responsibilities. The two roles do not give him two seats on regional council.
How the two roles will work
Ontario says an appointee who is also a lower-tier mayor will hold one seat on regional council, as chair. The lower-tier municipality will appoint someone else to represent it at the regional table. The mayor continues to serve on the local council and perform the duties of both positions.
The province’s announcement does not identify who will fill that additional Pickering representation. It also does not set out a specific compensation amount for Ashe.
Compensation is to be determined by municipalities. Where a chair is also a lower-tier mayor or councillor, the province says total compensation will be capped at the higher of the two salaries. The arrangement is therefore not described as adding the full pay of both offices together.
A regional role covering shared priorities
Heads of council represent the collective interests of the municipalities within their region. Ontario describes their work as including advocacy with the provincial and federal governments, leadership during emergencies, chairing regional council meetings and guiding policy discussions.
The provincial release also says heads of council have powers intended to streamline decisions, strengthen alignment with provincial priorities and introduce upper-tier budgets. Housing and infrastructure are among the priorities highlighted in the announcement.
Those responsibilities are distinct from the work of an individual municipality’s council. Upper-tier and lower-tier governments operate together, but have separate responsibilities. A regional chair leads the regional table rather than replacing the councils of Durham’s eight municipalities.
Whitby mayor welcomes the appointment
In a November 10 statement, Whitby Mayor Elizabeth Roy congratulated Kevin Ashe and pointed to his municipal-government experience. She identified housing, health care, infrastructure, affordability and community safety as issues requiring collaboration across Durham.
Roy also thanked outgoing Regional Chair John Henry for eight years of leadership and for his work with all eight municipalities. Durham Radio News reported that Henry had been elected to the position for the previous two terms.
Appointments replace a regional chair vote
Ontario says the Better Regional Governance Act, 2026 enables the minister to appoint heads of council in eight upper-tier municipalities. The province posted the positions on June 29 and accepted applications until July 13.
The November 10 announcement is a new regional appointment, separate from Ashe’s earlier Pickering municipal election result. It confirms the leadership decision without announcing an individual regional budget, a local council replacement or a new project approval.
