The reeve for the Rural Municipality of Montcalm will not run for re-election this fall.

Derek Sabourin has decided to exit civic politics when his term ends in October.

Sabourin was elected as reeve in 2014, beating out Laurent Vermette for the top job. Prior to that, he served one term as a councillor.

"I've got some things I'd like to do like spending more time with family. I also farm about 4,000 acres of land ... and about two-and-a-half years ago l lost my brother on the farm. So, I want to direct more of my attention to that," he said.

Like many local politicians, Sabourin says the amount of time required to be involved in municipal politics is significant. The time commitment is even greater for heads of council, such as mayors and reeves.

"I never thought the difference in time requirements would be so great going from councillor to reeve. I'm glad I did put my name in for reeve because we've accomplished a lot as a municipality, but the time commitment takes away from some of the other things I'd like to focus on."

Sabourin cited several projects as accomplishments for Montcalm over his past term as reeve.

"We reorganized our recreation districts including fire and emergency services. We've insured that there is stable predictable funding for equipment replacement and budgeting ... and I think that will serve the municipality well going forward."

Sabourin says he has enjoyed his time on council and appreciated how well council worked together to get things done for their ratepayers. His frustrations, however, are connected to dealing with the province on vital issues such as drainage.

"It's hard to understand how these projects take seven or eight years to even start, never mind completing them. Hopefully the next council will make some progress. It's time for someone else to see if they can get some of these projects done."

This year's municipal general election is scheduled for Wednesday, October 24.