Kanesatake elects new Mohawk Council of Kanesatake Grand Chief for first time in 10 years
Incumbent Mohawk Council of Kanesatake Grand Chief Serge Otsi Simon was looking to surpase a decade in office Saturday as the Kanien'kehá:ka (Mohawk) community 45 minutes north of Montreal holds elections.
Council Chief Victor Bonspille, however, had other plans.
The challenger defeated Simon for the grand chief position in an election that was delayed by over a month due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The count lasted from Saturday night into Sunday morning with Bonspille winding up with 368 votes to Simon's 283.
"It feels great that Kanesatake will be moving forward in a community effort," said Bonspille after an exhausting night of waiting.
Simon was first elected grand chief in 2011.
Fourteen candidates ran for six council chief positions that were won by Amy Beauvais, Jeremy Tomlinson, Denise David, John Canatonquin, Brant Etienne and Valerie Bonspille, Victor's sister.
Kanesatake has made news in recent months after a series of criminal incidents have raised calls for the creation of a local police force.
A clandestine party in June in defiance of the community's health measures that drew hundreds of partiers and killing at a local cannabis dispensary also drew attention to the large number of unsanctioned cannabis dispensaries on the territory.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.