TORONTO — Premier Doug Ford’s government has named eight regional and district chairs, including Vaughan Mayor Steven Del Duca, the former Ontario Liberal leader, and Conservative MP Scott Aitchison, who is leaving federal politics for the Muskoka role.Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Rob Flack announced the appointments Tuesday under the Better Regional Governance Act, 2026. The law lets the minister pick the heads of council in Durham, Halton, Niagara, Peel, Waterloo and York regions, plus Muskoka District and Simcoe County, instead of leaving the choice to voters or local councils in every case.The full list is Kevin Ashe for Durham, Ann Mulvale for Halton, Frank Campion for Niagara, Nando Iannicca for Peel (re-appointed), Scott Davey for Waterloo, Steven Del Duca for York, Scott Aitchison for Muskoka and Don McIsaac for Simcoe County.Del Duca, who led the Ontario Liberals from 2020 to 2022 and previously served as a Liberal cabinet minister, will keep his job as Vaughan mayor while taking the York chair. Aitchison, the MP for Parry Sound–Muskoka since 2019 and a former Huntsville mayor, has said he will resign his federal seat by the end of November and is scheduled to be sworn in as Muskoka District chair on December 1..The chairs receive so-called strong-chair powers modelled on the strong-mayor system already in place in some Ontario cities. Those powers include the ability to appoint or fire the chief administrative officer and division heads, direct staff, veto certain bylaws and propose the regional or county budget. The province says the changes will speed decisions and align regional work with provincial priorities such as housing and infrastructure.Critics say the move concentrates power at Queen’s Park. NDP MPP Jeff Burch called it an unprecedented handover of authority to hand-selected individuals. Opposition parties and some municipal figures have described the process as undemocratic because it removes local election or council selection for several of the roles.For chairs who also serve as mayors — including Del Duca and Pickering Mayor Kevin Ashe — pay is capped at the higher of the two salaries. Some chairs in the largest regions earned more than $225,000 in 2025, with Peel’s Iannicca the highest at roughly $278,000 including taxable benefits. That compares with Premier Ford’s salary of about $270,000 the same year.The appointments mix experienced municipal politicians with figures from both major parties. Del Duca has appeared with Ford at events in recent years and has thanked the premier and minister for the opportunity.
