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Frequently Asked Questions
- When is General Voting Day?
- What are the dates for advance voting?
- Do voters have to register in advance of General Voting Day?
- How do electors register to vote?
- Do voters have to re-register to vote for each election?
- Who is eligible to vote?
- What are the identification (ID) requirements in order to vote?
- What forms of identification (ID) are acceptable?
- Where do people go to vote?
- What provisions are made to assist disabled persons?
- What provisions are made for residents of care facilities?
- What provisions are made to assist people using other languages?
- Can people vote in New Westminster if they live elsewhere but own property here?
- When can people be nominated as candidates in the election?
- What are the general qualifications to run as a candidate?
- What is an elector organization?
- What is a campaign organizer?
- What is a campaign financing disclosure statement?
General voting day is November 19, 2011.
What are the dates for advance voting?
The dates for advance voting are:
| Wednesday, November 9, 2011 |
8am-8pm |
City Hall - Council Chambers |
| Tuesday, November 15, 2011 | 8am-8pm | City Hall - Council Chambers |
All qualified electors will be eligible to participate in advance voting.
Do voters have to register in advance of General Voting Day?
No.
Eligible Electors who are not registered on the voters' list and do not register during the advance registration period, may apply to register to vote at the time of voting.
How do electors register to vote?
If you are not already on the voter’ list, you can register at the Election Office at City Hall up to September 27, 2011. If you don’t register to vote in advance, don’t be concerned - you can always register at the voting place just before you vote. Remember, registration in advance of General Voting Day is not required. In order to register, a person must meet the eligibility requirements and present acceptable identification (see below for details).
Do voters have to re-register to vote for each election?
No.
If you voted in the last provincial, federal or civic election, then it is very likely that you are already registered to vote for the 2011 General Local and School Trustee Election.
The City uses the provincial voters list for civic elections, which is based on election registration data from both the provincial and federal voters lists. Elections BC maintains and updates the voters list between elections.
If you have recently moved, and have not updated your registration information with Elections BC, then you may wish to do so during the advance registration period to ensure that your current registration information for New Westminster is incorporated into the voters list.
There is no need to be concerned if you have not updated your registration information in advance of General Voting Day - an Election Official can easily process a change of address or registration update immediately before you vote at the voting place.
You may vote in the New Westminster General Local and School Trustee Election as a resident elector if you:
- are a Canadian citizen;
- are, or will be, 18 years of age or more on General Voting Day (Saturday, November 19, 2011), must have been born on or before November 19, 1993;
- have lived in BC for at least 6 months prior to registration (May 17, 2011 is the last day to meet residency requirement if registering on General Voting Day);
- have lived in New Westminster (or owned property in New Westminster for a non-resident elector) for at least 30 days prior to registration (October 19, 2011 is the last day to meet local residency requirement if registering on General Voting Day); and
-
are not disqualified from voting by the Local Government Act or any other enactment.
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What are the identification (ID) requirements in order to vote?
If a person is already registered on the voters list, there is no ID requirement at the time of voting.
If a person is not already registered on the voters list, and they are eligible to vote, the following ID requirements must be met when registering at the time of voting:
- at least 2 ID documents must be shown that provide evidence of the person’s identity and place of residence, at least one of which must contain the person’s signature,
OR
- at least 2 ID documents must be shown that provide evidence of the person’s identity, at least one of which must contain the person’s signature, and make a solemn declaration as to the person’s place of residence.
What forms of identification (ID) are acceptable?
The following are examples of acceptable identification documents (this is not an exhaustive list):
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Voting places are conveniently located throughout New Westminster, usually at schools and other public facilities. Locations will be well advertised in advance of the election in November.
What provisions are made to assist disabled persons?
People who have a physical disability, illness, or injury that affects their ability to vote at another voting opportunity may request on General Voting Day and on Advance Voting Days “curb-side voting,” which is a service whereby an elector may vote in their car with the assistance of an election official, provided the elector is able to drive to or be driven to their designated voting place. If an elector requires assistance to read or mark a ballot, they are permitted to be assisted by an election official or have the assistance of another person in the voting booth, provided the person assisting (other than an election official) completes the appropriate declarations. Also, every effort is made to ensure that all voting places are accessible.
What provisions are made for residents of care facilities?
Voting opportunities will be provided for residents of care facilities who would otherwise not be able to attend a voting place on General Voting Day. Special voting opportunities (hospital voting) will be available on November 17, 2011 from 10:00am-12:00pm at Queen's Park Hospital, and 1:00pm-3:00pm at Royal Columbian Hospital.
What provisions are made to assist people using other languages?
The City also makes an effort to have some multi-lingual election staff available at the voting places and if a person requires translation assistance in the voting booth, they may bring one person along with them to translate.
Ballots are not available in other languages.
Can people vote in New Westminster if they live elsewhere but own property here?
The Local Government Act allows people who are not residents of a municipality to vote if they own property within a given jurisdiction and qualify as a non-resident property elector. Of course, by definition, this right is only extended to people who are not residents so as to avoid double-voting. For example, a resident of Vancouver who owns property in New Westminster may vote in Vancouver as a resident elector and in New Westminster as a non-resident property elector. However, a person who lives in New Westminster, and owns additional properties in New Westminster may only vote once in New Westminster as a resident elector. The property must be owned personally and not by a corporation. No corporation is entitled to be registered as an elector or have a representative registered as an elector and no corporation is entitled to vote.
When can people be nominated as candidates in the election?
The nomination period begins on October 4, 2011 at 9:00 am and ends on October 14, 2011 at 4:00 pm. No candidate nominations can be filed except during the nomination period.
What are the general qualifications to run as a candidate?
In order to run as a candidate, you must:
- be 18 or older on general voting day
- be a Canadian citizen; and
- be a resident of British Columbia for at least 6 months before the election.
In addition, you must not have been otherwise disqualified, for example, by failing to file a campaign financing disclosure statement after the last election. Candidates in a civic election are not required to be residents of the community in which they are seeking public office. City and School Board employees are required to take a leave of absence before being nominated for a position on City Council or the Board of Education respectively. Metro Vancouver employees must also take a leave of absence before being nominated as a candidate for a City Council position. There is no fee or deposit payable to apply as a candidate.
What is an elector organization?
An elector organization is an organization that endorses the election of a particular candidate and has its name on the ballot along with the candidate’s name. If the organization wants to have its name appear on the ballot with the candidate's name, the organization must have been in existence for 60 days and have had a membership of 50 electors of the local government for that period. Elector organizations are bound by the same financial disclosure rules as candidates.
Campaign organizers are individuals or organizations that mount an election campaign and accept campaign contributions, intend to accept campaign contributions, or incur expenses in support of an election campaign. The primary difference between an elector organization and the newly-defined “campaign organizer” is that the campaign organizer does not officially endorse candidates on the ballot, but nevertheless, mounts an election campaign.
What is a campaign financing disclosure statement?
The purpose of campaign financing disclosure statements are to provide the public with more information as to who is financially supporting candidates, elector organizations and campaign organizers and how much is spent in running for elected office. Candidates, elector organizations and campaign organizers are required to prepare and file with the local government, public statements which outline the campaign contributions they received and election expenses they incurred.
The campaign financing disclosure statements must be filed 120 days after general voting day (March 19, 2012). The requirement to file a disclosure statement applies to all candidates, elector organizations and campaign organizers, whether or not contributions were received or election expenses were incurred.
For more information on the 2011 Local Government Election, please call 604-527-4572 or email
Thank-you!
