M. Donald Mitchell (born 1951) is a Canadian politician. He was the mayor of Whitby, Ontario from 2014 to 2022. As mayor, he also sat on

Durham Regional Council Durham Regional Council is the political body for the Regional Municipality of Durham in Ontario, Canada. Created in 1974, it consists of 29 elected representatives, including the Regional Chair. Durham Region is governed by Durham Regional Council, ...

Early life

Mitchell was born and raised in

Brooklin, Ontario Brooklin is a community in the town of Whitby, Ontario, Canada, north of Central Whitby, at the south junction of Ontario Highways 12 and 7. Brooklin was located primarily in rural area about two decades ago, but it is now part of the urban Wh ...

, a rural community within Whitby. He was educated at Meadowcrest Public School and

Anderson Collegiate Vocational Institute Anderson Collegiate Vocational Institute (Anderson CVI, Anderson Collegiate, Anderson, or ACVI) is located in Whitby, Ontario within the Durham District School Board. Established in 1960, the school has students in grades 9–12 and offers a wide ...

, and has a bachelor's degree from

Trent University Trent University is a public liberal arts university in Peterborough, Ontario, with a satellite campus in Oshawa, which serves the Regional Municipality of Durham. Trent is known for its Oxbridge college system and small class sizes.

and a law degree from

Queen's University Queen's or Queens University may refer to: *Queen's University at Kingston, Ontario, Canada *Queen's University Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK **Queen's University of Belfast (UK Parliament constituency) (1918–1950) **Queen's University of Belfast ...

. After graduating, he practised law for seven years, before taking over the family's lumber business, Mitchell Lumber. Mitchell is an active sportsman, especially in

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...

. He was a member of the 1976 Brooklin Redmen, and his 1970 junior lacrosse team was inducted into the Whitby Sports Hall of Fame.

Career

Mitchell was first elected to Whitby Town Council in 1991. He represented Whitby's North Ward for until

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

, when he ran unsuccessfully for a seat on

. He was elected to Durham Regional Council in 2006, and served concurrently as a Town Councillor. While on council, he often butted-heads with mayor Pat Perkins, and announced his intentions to run against her in the 2014 mayoral election. Perkins had other plans though, deciding to run in a by-election for

Whitby—Oshawa Whitby—Oshawa was a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 2004. Following the 2012 federal electoral boundaries redistribution, the bulk of the district became part ...

's seat in the House of Commons, opening the door wide open for Mitchell. Mitchell was easily elected, winning 73% of the vote. Mitchell ran for re-election in 2018 on a platform of "strong progress on council, local jobs and prosperity, vibrant downtowns, walkable neighbourhoods, and improved customer service." Mitchell was easily re-elected winning 71% of the vote, defeating Andrea Kennedy, his former executive advisor who won 29% of the vote. As mayor, one of Mitchell's top priorities was tackling climate change. Whitby was the first municipality in Durham Region to declare a climate emergency. Mitchell's final term as mayor was marked by "inter-council strife", which was highlighted when councillor Rhonda Mulcahy accused councillor Chris Leahy of insulting her during a live council meeting. Mulcahy also accused Mitchell of inappropriate behaviour in private, including making "sexual innuendos about a female member of staff on their knees" and assaulting her by giving her an unwelcome should massage at a public event. He did not run for re-election in 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Don Living people 1951 births Canadian lacrosse players Lacrosse people from Ontario Mayors of Whitby, Ontario Sportspeople from Whitby, Ontario Businesspeople from Ontario Lawyers in Ontario Trent University alumni Queen's University Faculty of Law alumni 20th-century Canadian businesspeople 20th-century Canadian lawyers 20th-century Canadian politicians 21st-century Canadian politicians