Toronto city council has picked a retired city official and a politically active lawyer to be interim councillors until the end of the current council term on Nov. 30.

Ceta Ramkhalawansingh, 62, former head of diversity and community engagement for the city, fills the vacancy in downtown Ward 20, Trinity-Spadina created by Adam Vaughan’s June 30 election to federal office.

Lawyer James Maloney, 49, is interim councillor in Ward 5, Etobicoke-Lakeshore, which had been held by council veteran Peter Milczyn until his June 12 election to provincial office.

Ramkhalawansingh polled 22 votes compared with 18 votes for second-place finisher Robert Lunney, former Peel Region police chief. Maloney received 24 votes versus 15 for real estate agent Agnes Potts.

Councillors earn $105,397 a year, making the five-month interim appointment worth about $43,000. Ramkhalawansingh, who receives a pension from the city, said she will give part of her council salary to charity.

“I’ll be donating some of it, not all of it, because I think you should be paid for the work you do,” she said.

The biggest ward issue at the moment is the massive Mirvish development at King and John Sts., Ramkhalawanasingh said, adding she served on a working group that proposed changes.

The revised plan, which saves the Princess of Wales Theatre and reduces the project to two condo towers from three, is a “significant improvement,” she said.

Maloney, a practising lawyer for 18 years, said transit is the biggest issue facing the city, although Ward 5 is well served by the Bloor-Danforth subway.

Maloney said he’s worked on a number of political campaigns in Etobicoke but doesn’t plan to run for a permanent council seat.

“This is a very unique opportunity because it’s a four-month window, so I felt I could do it. It’s four months, I can do this job and give back to the community.”

Councillor Mark Grimes (Ward 6, Etobicoke-Lakeshore) said Maloney has worked for his campaign in the past, and is vice-chair of the Franklin Horner Community Centre.

“I know James very well,” Grimes said. “He’s been around the block and back, and he knows the ground he walks on. I think he’s a great choice by council.”

Since retiring from the city four years ago, Ramkhalawansingh said, she has done volunteer work on local development issues that has brought her frequently to city hall.

Councillor Mike Layton (Ward 19, Trinity-Spadina) said Ramkhalawansingh is known to councillors on the Toronto and East York community council because of her attendance at meetings.

“I think she’ll do a great job,” Layton said. “There’s two months (of council meetings) left and so it’s a pretty steep learning curve. I think we made a good choice with someone that has experience working with issues at city hall and in the community.”

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Ramkhalawansingh and Maloney both said they have no interest in running for the job permanently.

The general election is Oct. 27 to pick a new 45-member city council that will hold office until 2018.