Simcoe County councillors say they want to put an end to the backroom dealings – especially like those in the hospitality suites and over meals at last week’s Association of Municipalities’ conference – as the way to elect a warden.

Many county councillors attended the conference, and even before the Ottawa meeting, they were talking about who would lead the county for the next year, possibly two years. County councillors decided effective December 2010, the warden will serve two years, and unofficially, it’s likely whomever is chosen this December will serve two years, just as present Warden Tony Guergis has served two.

“If we don’t have a process, what are we doing? How do members make a decision other than they’re slapped on the shoulder and told, ‘she’s a good gal’ or ‘he’s a good guy and I’m supporting him, come along with me,’” said Bradford West Gwillimbury Mayor David White, chairperson of the county’s Governance Committee.

“If I stand there and tell 32 members of this house and explain what my vision is, that’s how you govern a $400-million corporation.”

Midland Mayor Jim Downer, however, said he did his homework by attending county council meetings before he was elected mayor.

“I didn’t come in on inauguration day and get slapped on the back. I judged by what I saw,” he said.

Still others say having a process provides information and accountability.

“It puts me in a better position to make a good decision. If it’s all going to be in the backrooms and there’s no forum for questions, that’s not the way I want to operate,” said New Tecumseth Mayor Mike MacEachern.

“When I ran for mayor, I stood before the media and answered questions from the public. I had a responsibility to answer. It makes a lot of sense to have a process and get information.”

The county’s plan includes requiring candidates for warden to declare – then answer questions from councillors in an open forum.

Unofficially, the race for warden consists of two: incumbent Tony Guergis and Wasaga Beach Mayor Cal Patterson, who has served as chairperson of the county’s Performance Management Committee, the position unofficially pegged as deputy warden.

As chairperson of that committee, Patterson carries legal responsibilities should an emergency be declared and the warden not available.