Paul McQueen, Mayor of Grey Highlands, has taken the oath of office as Warden of Grey County for 2020. It was, to the knowledge of County Clerk Heather Morrison, an unprecedented tie vote among the 18 members of Grey County Council. Following the procedure announced before the vote, papers with the names of McQueen and 2019 Warden Selwyn Hicks were placed in a box and CAO Kim Wingrove drew the winner.

This is the only vote at Grey County Council that is not done by a show of hands.

McQueen was nominated by Chatsworth Mayor Scott Mackey and the nomination was seconded by the Deputy Mayor of Grey Highlands, Aaksh Desai. Hicks, the Deputy Mayor of Hanover and first term Warden of Grey County, was nominated by Owen Sound Mayor Ian Boddy and the nomination was seconded by Hanover Mayor Sue Paterson.

The Warden's inaugural address touched on some of the areas of potential growth in the region, the need to support newcomers and Owen Sound as the County's only city, and care for our aging population.  McQueen also acknowledged and thanked a group of former Grey County Wardens he referred to as "the Senate", many of whom were in attendance including Owen Sound's former Deputy Mayor, Arlene Wright.

Grey County council is made up of the Mayors and Deputy Mayors of the nine municipalities in Grey - Chatsworth, Georgian Bluffs, Grey Highlands, Hanover, Meaford, Owen Sound, Southgate, The Blue Mountains and West Grey.

(Factoid: Before the amalgamations of past decades, Grey County Council had as many as 52 members representing towns, townships and villages, with meetings lasting two and even three days.)

photo from Grey Highlands Facebook page.