After more than a decade at the helm of Vaughan City Council, Mayor Maurizio Bevilacqua says he will not seek another term in office.
“After much thought and personal reflection, today I announced that I will not seek re-election as mayor of Vaughan in the next municipal elections in October 2022,” Bevilacqua said in a statement released Wednesday night and tweeted Friday. to thank the community for continually giving me a strong mandate to serve and for their unwavering support over more than three decades in elected office. “
He said it will remain “the honor of my life to have served the residents of Vaughan.”
Bevilacqua, who made the announcement on his 62nd birthday, was first elected as a Liberal MP in 1988 when he was just 28 years old.
He moved into local politics in 2010 when he was first elected mayor and won re-election by a wide margin in 2014 and 2018.
Among his accomplishments as mayor, he listed the expansion of the subway system in Vaughan, the new Cortellucci Vaughan Hospital and thousands of new jobs.
After much thought and personal reflection, I announced that I would not seek re-election as mayor of Vaughan in the next municipal elections in October 2022. pic.twitter.com/ebjntNiKm7
– Mayor Maurizio Bevilacqua (@mbmayor) June 3
In his statement, he thanked his family for their “unwavering love and support” and also thanked his fellow councilors and the civil service.
“Their constant efforts demonstrate our shared commitment to providing excellent service and putting citizens first in everything we do,” Bevilacqua said. “Our achievements result from a laser-focused approach to deliver an exceptional standard of living and a high quality of life.”
Bevilacqua brought some calm to a council that had been known for internal struggles and disputed elections. One of his moves in office was to establish a commitment for council members, called the Vaughan Agreement, to commit to working together constructively “in a way that reflects a positive image of the city.”
His announcement leaves the door open for other potential candidates, with no headlines in a run for mayor a few months away.
Candidates for the municipal elections opened on May 2 and so far no candidate has run for mayor.
Several longtime board members, including former mayor and current local and regional councilor Linda Jackson, have already come forward to defend their current seats.
Voters go to the polls on October 24.
Bevilacqua’s announcement comes the same week that Ontario Liberal leader Steven Del Duca failed to get his seat in Vaughan-Woodbridge and announced that he would step down as party leader.
Bevilacqua has not said what he plans to do next.