About the Barometer
Mayors and councillors in Canada’s towns and cities are, collectively, among the most important elected representatives in Canada. Every year, these elected representatives oversee nearly $200 billion in spending, control some $500 billion in physical and financial assets, and make decisions on vital policy issues ranging from transportation to policing to climate change. In a time of considerable polarization and contention in Canada, some have celebrated municipal democracy as a beacon of pragmatic, non-partisan, flexible democratic representation. Others contend that municipal democracy is in serious trouble, with low levels of attention and engagement producing local policies that are biased toward homeowners and other privileged interests. More than ever, Canadian municipal researchers and practitioners need access to reliable data on municipal policy preferences, local democratic engagement, and practical solutions to shared democratic challenges.
Co-directors
Sandra
Breux
Sandra Breux is the Canada Research Chair in Municipal Elections and professor at the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique. Her research is focused on municipal democracy, voters and elected officials.
Jack
Lucas
Jack Lucas is a Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Calgary. His research is focused on municipal democracy, voting behaviour, political representation, and public opinion.
Reed
Merrill
Reed Merrill is the Canadian Municipal Barometer’s Partnership Coordinator. His role includes coding surveys, overseeing data collection and data management, managing finances, and facilitating knowledge mobilization initiatives.
Scientific Steering Committee
Audrey
Brennan
Audrey Brennan is a Canadian Municipal Barometer postdoctoral fellow, based out of the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique. Her research is focused on municipal democracy, political parties, electoral institutions, and representation.
Gabriel
Eidelman
Gabriel Eidelman is the Canadian Municipal Barometer’s Knowledge Mobilization Lead. He is Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream, and Director of the Urban Policy Lab at the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, with a joint appointment at the Institute for Management and Innovation. His award-winning teaching and research focus on urban governance and intergovernmental relations in Canada. He is part of the Multilevel Governance research Pillar.
Kristin
Good
Kristin Good is the Canadian Municipal Barometer’s Multilevel Governance Pillar Lead, and is Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at Dalhousie University with a cross-appointment to the Law, Justice and Society program. She has done groundbreaking research on the multilevel governance of immigration and the constitutional status of Canadian municipalities.
Martin
Horak
Martin Horak is the Canadian Municipal Barometer’s Public Policy Pillar Lead, and is an Associate Professor at the Centre for Urban Policy and Local Governance at the University of Western Ontario. His research is focused on the dynamics of municipal policy-making, democracy, and multilevel governance.
Michael
McGregor
Michael McGregor is the Canadian Municipal Barometer’s Elections and Voting Pillar Lead and is Associate Professor in the Department of Politics and Public Administration at Toronto Metropolitan University. He is an expert on municipal elections and has conducted research on a variety of topics related to the attitudes, motivations, and behaviours of voters and non-voters in Canada.
Nicole
McMahon
Nicole McMahon is a Canadian Municipal Barometer postdoctoral fellow, based out of the University of Calgary. Her research is focused on LGBTQ+ politics, political representation, and public policy.
Erin
Tolley
Erin Tolley is the Canadian Municipal Barometer’s Diverse Representation Pillar Lead and the Canada Research Chair in Gender, Race, and Inclusive Politics at Carleton University. Her award-winning research examines the link between socio-demographic diversity and Canadian politics, with a specific focus on gender, race, and elected institutions.
Team Members
Tari
Ajadi
Tari Ajadi is an assistant professor of political science at McGill University. He engages in research and public activism in the areas of municipal social movements and policy change with a focus on policing and health policy. He is part of our Diverse Representation research Pillar.
Dave
Armstrong
Dave Armstrong is a professor at Western University’s department of Political Science and Canada Research Chair in Political Methodology. He is a global leader in statistical analysis and data science. His research includes measurement and latent trait estimation, the role of non-linearity, and data mining techniques.
Amanda
Bittner
Amanda Bittner is a professor of political science at Memorial University. She is a leading scholar of political leadership, gender, and voting behaviour, especially in the areas of representation and mayoral leadership. She is part of our Diverse Representation research Pillar.
Sophie
Borwein
Sophie Borwein is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of British Columbia. She is interested in the politics of place, the political consequences of technological change, and political behaviour. She is part of our Elections and Voting research Pillar.
Charles
Breton
Charles Breton is Executive Director of the Institute for Research on Public Policy’s Centre of Excellence on the Canadian Federation. He has expertise in intergovernmental relations and public opinion, and deep knowledge of survey data collection and analysis. He is part of our Public Policy research Pillar.
Chadwick
Cowie
Chadwick Cowie is an assistant professor of political science at the (University of Toronto (St. George and Scarborough Campuses). He is a scholar of Canadian politics, Indigenous-settler relations, and Indigenous political participation. He is a member of the Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg community of Pamitaashkodeyong and is an expert in Indigenous-engaged research. He is part of our Multilevel Governance research Pillar.
Sabreena
Delhon
Sabreena Delhon is the Chief Executive Officer of the Samara Centre for Democracy and host of Humans of the House, a podcast that explores the lived experience of former Members of Parliament. She is part of our Diverse Representation research Pillar.
Meghan
Joy
Meghan Joy is an associate professor of political science at Concordia University. Their expertise is urban policy and politics, with a focus on inclusive and age-friendly policy. They are part of our Public Policy research Pillar.
Stewart
McDonough
Stewart McDonough is the Municipal Engagement Advisor at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario where he leads AMO’s Healthy Democracy Project working with local elected officials and partners to improve democratic engagement and political participation across Ontario municipalities. He is part of our Elections and Voting research Pillar.
Anne
Mévellec
Anne Mévellec is a professor of political science at the University of Ottawa. She is an established scholar of municipal politics, with expertise in gender diversity, political parties, and municipal politics and focuses on institutions and their consequences for democracy and representation. She is part of our Diverse Representation research Pillar.
Aaron
Moore
Aaron Moore is a professor of political science at the University of Winnipeg. He researches planning, local economic development, and the connections between municipal policy and local elections. He is part of our Public Policy research Pillar.
Matthew
Pelletier
Matthew Pelletier is a Policy and Data Advisor at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. His work focuses on democratically representative multilevel governance, especially in the areas of infrastructure, transportation, and housing. He is part of our Multilevel Governance research Pillar.
Scott
Pruysers
Scott Pruysers is an associate professor of political science at Dalhousie University. He is a scholar of political parties and elections, with a focus on political psychology. He is part of our Elections and Voting research Pillar.
Alison
Smith
Alison Smith is an associate professor of political science at the University of Toronto Mississauga. She is a specialist in the multilevel governance of social policy, with a particular focus on homelessness and housing policy. She is part of our Multilevel Governance research Pillar.
Gregory
Spencer
Gregory Spencer is the Director of Research at the Canadian Urban Institute, and has expertise in housing and urban design. He is part of our Public Policy research Pillar.
Zac
Spicer
Zac Spicer is an associate professor at York University’s School of Public Policy and Administration. He is an expert in intermunicipal collaboration and innovation. He is part of our Multilevel Governance research Pillar.
Zack
Taylor
Zack Taylor is an associate professor of political science at Western University, where he has special teaching responsibilities in the graduate Local Government Program. He teaches and researches on comparative multi-level urban governance, urban political economy, and urban and regional planning, and pursues parallel interests in applying geospatial analysis and the historical census in political science. He is part of our Public Policy research Pillar.
Beatrice
Wayne
Beatrice Wayne is the Research Director at the Samara Centre for Democracy. In this role, she leads diverse mixed-methods research projects focused on building a more responsive political landscape in Canada. Her work is dedicated to advancing a vibrant culture of civic engagement across Canada. He is part of our Elections and Voting research Pillar.
Advisory Committee
Julie-Anne
Boudreau
Julie-Anne Boudreau is a professor at the Institute of Geography of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, and her work focuses on youth practices and political action in cities such as Montreal and Mexico City.
Peter
Loewen
Peter Loewen is the Harold Tanner Dean of the College of Arts and Science at Cornell University and a Professor at the Department of Government. He is the director of numerous Canadian and comparative research projects on political elites at all levels of government, and has published widely on elite political behaviour, political representation, and public policy.
Laura
Stephenson
Laura Stephenson is a Professor of Political Science at Western Ontario University and Principal Investigator for the Consortium on Electoral Democracy (C-Dem), a major research partnership on Canadian electoral democracy. She specializes in political behaviour, both Canadian and comparative.
Stefaan
Walgrave
Stefaan Walgrave is a Research Professor at the University of Antwerp, where he directs POLPOP, a major international comparative study of national and regional politicians. His research is focused on public policy agendas, media and politics, and politician representation.
International Collaboration Committee
Katherine
Einstein
Katherine Levine Einstein is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Boston University. Her research is focused on local and urban politics with a particular focus on housing policy, local public engagement processes, and political representation. She is one of the leaders of the Menino Survey of Mayors, a 10-year survey of mayors in the United States administered by Boston University’s Initiative on Cities.
Nathalie
Giger
Nathalie Giger is an Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Geneva. Her research is focused on citizens and elite political behaviour and political representation, both comparatively and in Switzerland.
Miguel
Pereira
Miguel Pereira is an Assistant Professor of European Politics at the London School of economics. His research is focused on elite political behaviour, at the national, regional, and local levels, with a particular focus on inequality, gender and politics, and policy diffusion.
Lior
Sheffer
Lior Sheffer is a Senior Lecturer of Political Science at the Tel Aviv University. His research is focused on elite political behaviour, looking at whether and how elected officials differ from non-politicians when they solve problems and reason about the policy choices they have to make, and how this affects the quality of representation in democracies.
Staff
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