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Telkwa mayor steps down; village cites health issues

Layton has served on council since 2011
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Telkwa mayor Brad Layton, second from left, calls for a vote to roll back a five per cent water and sewer rate increase voted for at the March 26 council meeting. (Thom Barker photo)

Following months of being absent from council meetings, Telkwa Mayor Brad Layton has stepped down.

In a press release this afternoon (Jan. 13), the Village of Telkwa only cited “health issues.”

Layton was first elected as a councillor in 2011 and served in that capacity until he was elected as Mayor in 2019. He remained in that position until January of 2022.

In 2015, he threw his hat into federal politics as the Liberal candidate for Skeena-Bulkley Valley after volunteering in two elections for the BC Liberals and serving a term as the president of the BC Liberal riding association in the Bulkley Valley.

READ MORE: Brad Layton reflects on first year as Telkwa mayor

In that election Layton came in third with 18.7 per cent of the vote behind the NDP’s Nathan Cullen (51 per cent) and Conservative Tyler Nesbitt (24.8) per cent.

He also unsuccessfully ran for Smithers council in 2008.

“Village of Telkwa Council and staff thank Brad for service to the community of Telkwa for more than a decade, and wishes him all the best in the future,” the release stated.

With a general municipal election scheduled for October of this year, Telkwa CAO Debbie Joujan said there will not be a byelection to replace Layton noting there is no “legislative requirement under these circumstances” to do so.

Coun. Leroy Dekens is currently serving as acting mayor.

“A final decision has not been made at this point regarding the Acting Mayor, Deputy Mayor roles, and committee appointments for the rest of this term,” Joujan said via email.



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Thom Barker

About the Author: Thom Barker

After graduating with a geology degree from Carleton University and taking a detour through the high tech business, Thom started his journalism career as a fact-checker for a magazine in Ottawa in 2002.
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