Mail Ballot Request
November 14, 2023
TRUSTEE ELECTORAL AREA 1 (UPPER)
Comprised of Sunshine Coast Regional District Electoral Areas A and B, and shíshálh Nation Government District 6, 6A, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 12A, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 19A, 20, 20A, 21, 21A, 22, 24, 25, 26 and 27.
REQUESTING A MAIL BALLOT PACKAGE:
In order to obtain a mail ballot, you must submit the following information to the Chief Election Officer at School District No. 46 by 4:00 p.m. on December 8, 2023:
- Full name,
- Residential address,
- Address of the property in relation to which you are voting (for non-resident property electors only),
- Method of delivery of your mail ballot package:
– pick up at the School Board Office at 494 South Fletcher Road, Gibsons and, if you wish, name of person you authorize to pick up package for you, OR
– regular letter mail through Canada Post to residential address, provided the request is received before November 24, 2023, OR
– regular letter mail through Canada Post to an alternate address that you provide when requesting the ballot package, provided the request is received before November 24, 2023, and
- To ensure you receive the correct registration application form in your package, you must indicate whether you are going to be registering as a resident or non-resident property elector.
Click here to download an application form
INSTRUCTIONS: REQUEST FOR MAIL BALLOT
1. Complete this application form. A separate application is required for each person wishing to vote by mail. You can deliver the completed form to the Chief Election Officer in one of the following ways:
Options for returning this request for mail ballot | |
By email: | By fax: 604-881-4652 |
By hand: 494 South Fletcher Rd, Gibsons, BC, V0N 1V0 | By mail: PO Box 220, Gibsons, BC, V0N 1V0 |
2. If your application is complete and you qualify to vote by mail ballot, a mail ballot package will be prepared and made available to you following the information included in this form. If we receive your application after November 24, 2023, the time may be insufficient for mailing and receipt of the ballot; in those cases, we will ask that you arrange to pick up the mail ballot package from the School Board Office.
3. To be counted, your completed mail ballot must be received either at the School Board Office before 4:00 p.m. on December 8, 2023, or in person at either of the voting locations before 8:00 p.m. on December 9, 2023. You are responsible for ensuring that your completed ballot and documents are received by the Chief Election Officer by these deadlines.
Please note that once you request a mail ballot, you will not be issued another ballot for this election.
If you have a mail ballot package and wish to vote at any other voting opportunity instead of by mail, bring your mail ballot package to a voting opportunity and speak to an election official.
It is the responsibility of the elector to return the ballot by these deadlines.
For additional information, contact:
Robert Harper, Chief Election Officer at 250-802-1953
Nicholas Weswick, Deputy Chief Election Officer at 604-886-4485
Email: 2023byelection@sd46.bc.ca
To be eligible to vote in a school trustee election, a person must qualify either as a resident elector or a non-resident property elector, and must be registered or deemed to be registered as an elector of the trustee electoral area [School Act, section 39 (1)(a) and (c)]. In addition, the person must not be any of the following:
- disqualified under the School Act, or other enactment or law, from voting in the election;
- completing a sentence for an indictable offence, unless the person is released on probation or parole and is not in custody;
- involuntarily confined to a psychiatric or other institution as a result of being acquitted of, or found not criminally responsible for, an offence under the Criminal Code on account of mental disorder;
- proven to have accepted an inducement to vote.
[School Act, section 39 (1)(b) and (2)]
In addition, a person who has filed a declaration with the francophone education authority that he or she has not and will not vote in an election of school trustees is disqualified from voting at a trustee election to which the declaration applies [School Act, section 39 (2.1)].
A person is not permitted to vote more than once in a trustee election for any one school district [School Act, section 39 (4)]. Further, no corporation or its representative may be registered as an elector, and no corporation may vote [School Act, section 39 (3)].
View the Voter’s Guide to Local Elections in B.C. for additional information.
A by-election has been called for TEA 1 (Upper). The school district Trustee Electoral Areas are described below.
Trustee Electoral Area | Description: | # of trustees |
TEA 1 (Upper) | Sunshine Coast Regional District Electoral Areas A and B and Sechelt Indian Band Lands 6, 6A, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 12A, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 19A, 20, 20A, 21, 21A, 22, 24, 25, 26 and 27. | One |
TEA 2 (Central) | District of Sechelt and Sechelt Indian Band Lands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 28. | Three |
TEA 3 (Lower) | Town of Gibsons and Sunshine Coast Regional District Electoral Areas D, E and F. | Three |
If you would like more information on the school district’s Trustee Electoral Areas, please contact Robert Harper (Chief Election Officer) at 250-802-1953 or Nicholas Weswick (Deputy Chief Election Officer) at 604-886-4485.
Public notice of the nomination period is available here
Nomination documents will be available at the School Board Office during regular office hours, from October 24, 2023 to the close of the nomination period, on November 3, 2023 at 4:00 p.m.:
- School District No. 46 Board Office – 494 South Fletcher Road, Gibsons, BC
Nomination Papers are considered a public record as soon as they are filed with the Chief Election Officer. The documents will be available at the School Board Office for viewing during normal business hours. Individuals who have filed nomination papers will be listed here.
Trustee Electoral Area 1 (Upper)
MCCLELLAND, Tracey Lynn – Sechelt, BC
O’KEEFFE, Jay Dean – Madeira Park, BC
- Nomination Period: October 24, 2023 at 9:00 am to November 3, 2023 at 4:00 pm
- Deadline for Receiving Originals of Faxed or Emailed Nomination Documents: November 10, 2023 at 4:00 pm
- Campaign Period: November 11, 2023 – December 9, 2023
- By-Election Voting Day: December 9, 2023
- Financing Disclosure Statement Filing Deadline: March 8, 2024
- Financing Disclosure Statement Late Filing Deadline with $500 Late Filing Fee: April 7, 2024
Click here to download a list of key dates for the 2023 School Trustee By-Election.
- Candidate Information Session – More about the Role of the Trustee
- School Trustee Election Procedures in British Columbia
- A Guide for School Trustee Candidates
- The Role of Boards of Education and Trustees in BC
- Candidate’s Guide to Local Elections
- Thinking about Running for Local Office
- Being an Effective Elected Official Video Series
- Local Elections Campaign Financing Act
- Guide to Local Elections Campaign Financing in B.C. for Candidates and their Financial Agents
Links to the notices and statutory declarations will be updated on the dates listed below.
- Notice of Nomination – October 6, 2023
- Declaration of Candidates – November 3, 2023
- Declaration of Election by Voting or by Acclamation – November 14, 2023
- Notice of Advance Voting Opportunities by November 22, 2023
- Notice of Election by December 2, 2023
- Official election results must be declared by 4 p.m. on December 13, 2023