Cypress County drops ‘reeve’ label’ for ‘mayor,’ cites confusion outside Western Canada

By ANNA SMITH Local Journalism Initiative on December 4, 2025.

asmith@medicinehatnews.com

Cypress County is making changes to the titles used for chief elected officials.

Moving forward, the position of reeve is now titled as mayor, and deputy reeve will be deputy mayor.

The move, says Mayor Dan Hamilton, was made in consideration of the upcoming 2026 Cypress County Site Link Economic Development Conference, which will see business leaders from outside of Western Canada, who may be unfamiliar with the title of reeve and what the position entails.

“I know we’ve had our economic development,go to Japan already this year, maybe it will happen again next year. If you’re talking to somebody in Japan, they have no idea what a reeve is, but they do know what a mayor is,” said Hamilton.

This change does not change the election process within Cypress County at this time, explained Hamilton. The chief elected officer will still be chosen by council following election of each councillor according to their ward.

“While the titles have changed, the roles, responsibilities and strong commitment to our residents remain exactly the same,” said Hamilton. “This shift simply brings our terminology in line with what most people are familiar with across the province.”

Residents, partner municipalities, government agencies and external partners are encouraged to update their records and future correspondence to reflect the new titles.

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