Brian Ohler resigns following medical leave

NORTH CANAAN — North Canaan Selectman Brian Ohler resigned last week after a five-month medical leave, saying he could no longer justify remaining absent while the town’s three-member Board of Selectmen continued operating with only two active members.

Ohler’s resignation, effective July 31, follows a medical emergency in February that initially appeared to be a stroke. Although he has undergone extensive testing, doctors have not determined the cause, he said, and the search for answers continues.

“I have come to a very hard decision,” Ohler wrote in a Facebook post after filing his resignation. “It would be selfish of me to remain on such a prolonged medical leave when the residents and businesses of the Town of North Canaan deserve a full and active Board of Selectmen.”

He thanked residents for their support throughout his recovery and said he hopes improved health will allow him to return to public service.

“My love for the Town of North Canaan and the good people who also call it home is eternal,” he wrote. “The prospect of returning once again to elected municipal service in the future will remain the fuel and strength that lives within me.”

Ohler first announced his leave in March after describing symptoms that included double vision, slurred speech and paralysis on the right side of his body. While neurologists have not identified a definitive diagnosis, he has said physicians are also examining whether traumatic brain injuries sustained during his military service in Iraq and Afghanistan may have contributed to his condition.
Ohler notified First Selectman Jesse Bunce on Thursday, July 30, that he was stepping down.

“I wish him the best in his health, and I hope he can find out the cause of his issues,” Bunce said.

His absence had left the three-member Board of Selectmen operating with only Bunce and Selectman Melissa Pinardi. Although the two-member board could continue conducting business since it still met quorum requirements, the arrangement left little flexibility and created the potential for deadlocked votes.

“It’s a tough thing to run the town with two people,” Bunce said. “I do appreciate Brian giving us his resignation so we can move forward.”

Pinardi said it must have been difficult for Ohler to step down.

“Brian put his whole heart and soul into the town,” she said. “I know it was very hard for him to come to that decision. But he didn’t feel like he could give 100% right now.”

Ohler could not be reached for comment.

Replacement process begins

With Ohler’s resignation now official, town officials have begun the process of filling the vacancy for the remainder of his term, which was to end in November 2027.

Under Connecticut law, the town has 30 days from the date of the vacancy to appoint a replacement, according to Town Attorney D. Randall DiBella, a partner at Cramer & Anderson, who represents several towns. The appointment will be made by a vote of Bunce and Pinardi.

Since Ohler was elected as a Republican, DiBella said his replacement must be either a Republican or an unaffiliated voter. In this case, the Republican Town Committee is likely to recommend a candidate for the board’s consideration.

However, if Bunce and Pinardi cannot agree on an appointment, DiBella said the town’s elected Republican officeholders would choose the replacement.

Bunce said he plans to ask the Republican Town Committee to recommend a candidate and noted that Ohler did not suggest any potential successors before resigning.

Residents who disagree with the appointment may circulate a petition to force a special election. However, DiBella said that in his 40 years of representing municipalities, he has never seen a vacancy filled that way.

Long record of public service

Ohler has spent much of the past decade in public service. He represented Connecticut’s 64th House District from 2017 to 2019, before being defeated by Democrat Maria Horn by a thin margin in November 2018, losing by 61 votes. In November 2023, he was elected first selectman in North Canaan, succeeding Charles Perotti, who did not seek re-election.

He served one term before narrowly losing his bid for re-election to Bunce in November. Bunce prevailed by just two votes, 572-570, following a recount. However, Ohler was re-elected to the board of selectmen, just not as first selectman.

Beyond elected office, Ohler served 12 years in the U.S. Army as a military police officer, volunteering for three combat deployments — two in Iraq and one in Afghanistan — before receiving an honorable discharge in 2013.

A lifelong fifth-generation North Canaan resident, Ohler comes from a family with a long history of service to the town.