Suppression or engagement? Springwater council divided on voting methods
By: Wayne Doyle, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Source: BarrieToday.com, Dec 06, 2025
Citing security and fraud concerns, Springwater Deputy Mayor George Cabral was looking for council to buy into his argument that the township should do away with internet and telephone voting and go back to paper ballots and special mail-in ballots to decide the 2026 municipal and school board elections.
When the topic came up on the agenda at Wednesday’s council meeting, he said he’s been looking into remote voting recently and is not convinced it’s the way to go.
“I really have some concerns and I know there are other councils in Ontario that are also looking at this with an eye to determine whether or not it’s something that should be engaged in,” Cabral said. “There are no guidelines from the provincial government; the provincial government does not use remote voting, the federal government does not use remote voting.
“So, I’m very leery of going down that road,” he added.
Cabral says remote voting has not increased voter engagement and he argued there are alternative ways to ensure people who can’t get to a polling station can still cast their vote — the special mail-in ballot.
Coun. Matt Garwood disagreed. He considered Cabral’s motion akin to voter suppression.
He pointed to the statistics that were included in the report titled ‘2026 Municipal and School Board Election – Alternative Voting Methods,’ which was prepared for council by the township’s former clerk and delivered to council at its Sept. 3 meeting.
In it, there is a chart from the 2022 municipal election that tracks the various voting methods that were in place at the time.
According to the chart, 474 electors (roughly eight per cent) cast their ballot in person, 631 (about 11 per cent) did so via telephone and 4,651 (almost 81 per cent) used the internet.
According to information compiled by the Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks and Treasurers of Ontario (AMCTO) after the 2022 municipal election, Springwater’s internet voter use far surpassed the provincial average of 57 per cent.
“Over 90 per cent of electors in 2022 cast their votes via telephone or internet,” Garwood said. “Of that 90, 80 of that was internet completely — not in person, not on the phone outside of this chamber or any polling location.
“If we’re sitting here talking about removing the option in which 80 to 90 per cent of our residents participated in the last election, to me, I don’t see how that’s anything other than suppressing the vote,” he added.
Garwood noted 14 municipalities in Simcoe County use some version of internet voting.
According to the AMCTO survey, 58 per cent of municipalities in the province used internet voting and 93 per cent of folks who voted via the internet in 2022 were very satisfied with their choice.
That’s not to say everyone was satisfied.
The survey notes that 20 per cent of municipalities that used internet voting had some challenges, including issues related to incorrect voter list data, issuing voter cards and software providers.
Coun. Danielle Alexander, who works in IT, said one of her big concerns was the technology offered by vendors. She said many of the vendors who provide voting solutions are choosing not to use the technology that is available for multi-factor authentication because it affects their profitability.
“They don’t want to pay for it because it’s going to affect their bottom line,” she said. “The technology is there, we could do this properly, but the companies are choosing not to.”
Garwood, who also works in IT, countered Alexander’s claim.
“My concerns regarding security equal my concerns for accessibility and access and participation,” he said.
Garwood said removing all other forms of voting would be regressive.
“We are just going down such a bad path here and it’s very disappointing,” he said. “We are not moving forward in the direction that 444 other municipalities are across the province.
“Springwater is taking a step backward in time,” the councillor added.
Springwater Mayor Jennifer Coughlin was not in favour of Cabral’s motion. She said taking away internet and telephone voting, something 90 per cent of the township embraced, was not in the township’s best interest.
She said the discussion council just had should have been a public discussion where residents could provide input.
With Cabral’s motion still on the floor and discussion around the council table to provide an alternate amendment to get public feedback and consultation before making a final decision, Coughlin sought procedural advice from the township’s clerk.
“Whether this amendment passes or fails, a referral of the entire motion could be tabled,” the clerk responded.
Cabral’s motion was defeated in a recorded 4-3 vote.
Garwood then proposed a referral that would seek public engagement on all voting methods, including a survey during an open house and further information regarding costs to be provided to council in February 2026. The referral passed.
According to the township’s clerk, a decision must be made by May 1. If no decision is made, the election would automatically revert to a paper ballot.
Municipal elections will take place in Ontario on Oct. 26, 2026.
Bill 76 passes, transferring thousands of acres to City of Barrie
By: Wayne Doyle, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Source: BarrieToday.com, Dec 09, 2025
For those who have been following Barrie’s boundary expansion proposal for the past two years, today’s passing of Bill 76 is either a wonderful present or a lump of coal.
Tuesday afternoon, the Ontario legislature passed Bill 76, the Barrie-Oro-Medonte-Springwater Boundary Adjustment Act, 2025.
Effective Jan. 1, 2026, the legislation will transfer 4,132 acres from the townships of Oro-Medonte and Springwater to the City of Barrie to support long-term housing, employment and infrastructure growth.
This breaks down to 3,004 acres from Springwater and 1,129 acres from Oro-Medonte.
“For too long, Barrie residents have had to leave the city to find good jobs. Today’s passed legislation is a decisive step toward changing that, and it shows real leadership from the province,” Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall told BarrieToday late Tuesday afternoon.
“Unlocking these lands gives Barrie the ability to attract major employers, grow our local economy and build the kind of job opportunities our residents deserve right here at home.”
Springwater Mayor Jennifer Coughlin said she has mixed emotions on the passing of Bill 76.
“It’s a combination of relief and excitement. This process has been all encompassing, but it’s been worth every step. The passing of Bill 76 finally allows us to move forward — in full partnership with the City of Barrie — and get shovels in the ground,” she said.
“It’s progress that will benefit our residents and businesses for generations.”
BarrieToday reached out to Oro-Medonte Mayor Randy Greenlaw for reaction to the passing of Bill 76 but didn’t hear back from him prior to this story being published.
Barrie city council approved draft framework agreements with Springwater and Oro-Medonte on Oct. 1, 2025. It included Barrie paying its neighbours $15,000 per developable acre, or more than $33 million in total, paying the county $5 million for regional economic development initiatives and paying Springwater another $850,000, also related to economic development initiatives.
But with the introduction of legislation, Bill 76, those agreements no longer form the basis for the boundary expansion — though many of the provisions included in the draft framework agreements are reflected in the legislation.
According to the legislation, “the City of Barrie shall make such payment or payments, or provide such other forms of compensation, as required and determined by the regulations, if any, to the Township of Oro-Medonte, the Township of Springwater and the County of Simcoe.”
In a BarrieToday story that was published last week prior to the passing of Bill 76, both Coughlin and Greenlaw felt their municipalities should receive compensation.
Greenlaw said Oro-Medonte still expects to be compensated by Barrie for land annexed under Bill 76, to the tune of $15,000 per developable acre.
He said that amount was determined and proposed by the City of Barrie, and was negotiated in good faith, accepted and endorsed by Oro-Medonte at its special council meeting Nov. 4.
“The township has been and continues as an active and willing participant throughout the facilitation process, with the objective of reaching a mutually beneficial solution for the province, County of Simcoe and all parties involved,” he said.
“This has been the objective from the onset of the facilitation process. We continue to work toward this outcome.”
Coughlin said the province introducing Bill 76 triggers compensation talks.
“We will work towards finalizing compensation details with the City of Barrie based on the (Springwater) council-approved framework agreement, to which we remain fully committed,” she said.
“Under the negotiated ‘mutual prosperity’ framework, the total compensation package for the Township of Springwater is valued at approximately $22 million, based on a rate of $15,000 per developable acre.”
Coughlin said she will work with Nuttall and the province “to finalize these details and get shovels in the ground for the housing and services our region and residents need.”
Nuttall was equally amicable.
“We’re grateful for the province’s strong action, and we will continue working closely with our neighbouring municipalities to ensure this next phase delivers the best possible results for the people of the greater Barrie area,” he said.
— With files from Bob Bruton