Haines Junction is without a mayor and chief administrative officer (CAO) following their sudden resignations within a week.

CAO Michael Riseborough was the first to tender his immediate resignation late last week.

It was only at Wednesday's meeting of council, however, that George Nassiopoulos told his then-colleagues he was quitting as mayor.

He submitted his letter of resignation effective Thursday morning.

His letter, addressed to Coun. Mike Crawshay, the deputy mayor, doesn't give specific reasons for the resignation, stating:

"It is with regret that I must submit my letter of resignation as the mayor of Haines Junction. It has been my honour and pleasure to work with you. I wish you continued success in the future.”

Nassiopoulos could not be reached for comment today.

Meanwhile, Riseborough declined to comment on his decision to quit the job.

The situation essentially leaves the village with little in the way of formal leadership.

In Haines Junction, when a CAO resigns, the role falls to the mayor until a new CAO can be found.

In this case, with both positions empty, the two roles fall to the deputy mayor. That's Crawshay, who left town on a hunting trip prior to Wednesday's council meeting, when Nassiopoulos resigned.

In an interview this morning, Coun. Angie Charlebois said the remaining members of council have not had a chance to meet since Nassiopoulos announced he was quitting as mayor.

"It was unexpected,” Charlebois said.

She was reluctant to repeat what was said at the council meeting by the mayor, noting the minutes of Wednesday's meeting have not been adopted.

As soon as the minutes are adopted, which is expected to happen at the Sept. 25 council meeting, she said, she plans to make them available to others through the Happenings of Haines Junction Facebook page.

Village treasurer Donna Istchenko said while Riseborough indicated he could no longer work with council, Nassiopoulos told the village he felt he didn't have the confidence of council and therefore would not be able to achieve the mandate he set out when he sought another term as mayor in last October's municipal election.

She declined to go into greater detail of the situation, noting as well that the minutes had not yet been approved from the last council meeting.

The situation leaves the village in a state of limbo for the time being until Crawshay returns.

It's expected he will be back for next week's meeting.

With Crawshay gone, it may not be until his return that he learns he will go from being a councillor who fills in as acting mayor when the mayor's not available to acting as both the mayor and CAO until a byelection is held to elect a new mayor and a new CAO is hired.

Istchenko said she was unsure just how long it could take to hire a new CAO.

The village could get some help from the Yukon government though while the hiring process takes place, Christine Smith, the territory's director of community affairs, told the Star this morning

She noted that the territory has a list of people who can serve as acting CAOs while the position is being filled if the request is made.

The list consists largely of retired administrators who are willing to work on a contract basis in situations where needed, she explained.

In the past, she added, she's seen the acting position filled within a week of a request being made.

As for filling the mayor's position on a permanent basis before the next election, Smith said, a byelection has to happen between 30 and 45 days following a resignation, and that process will be run by the village.