Candidate Information

You can run for any of the positions if you 

• are 18 or older on General Voting Day (October 15)
• are a Canadian Citizen
• were a resident of British Columbia for at least 6 months before submitting your nomination documents;
• Not disqualified from voting or from being nominated for, being elected to or holding office, or be otherwise disqualified by law

If you submit your nomination documents on September 9, you must have been a BC resident since at least March 8, 2022.

The Local Government Act S. 81(2) and and 82(1) define who is not eligible to run for Council. The School Act S. 33 and 34 define who is not eligible to run for School Board Trustee.

The Local Elections Campaign Financing Act is overseen by Elections BC. The City has no role in this aspect of the election. Please see the Elections BC website for more information.

Update, May 25, 2022: Elections BC has announced the campaign spending limits for the 2022 General Local Election. Expense limits for candidates in New Westminster are as follows:

The Province has a number of documents and videos that should be reviewed by prospective candidates for Council.

The Thinking of Running for Local Office? page has five videos on the roles and responsibilities of Council members and local government. You're encouraged to review these, along with the documents available on that page before making the decision to run for Council.

After you've decided to run for Council the You've decided to run for local office page has four videos on what to expect before, during and after the 2022 local elections. 

There are also a number of resources on this page. Many of them are for the 2018 Election and will be updated. Make sure that you are referencing 2022 Elections documents for accurate information.

The nomination process for School Trustee candidates is the same as for Council candidates. You can get a general idea of what to expect before, during, and after the general local elections by reviewing the videos on the Provincial website.

The BC School Trustee's Association (BCSTA) provides information for prospective School Board Trustee Candidates. You are encouraged to review the following pages and documents before deciding whether to run for School Trustee:

• General Information on Trustee Elections
  • Putting Students first: A guide for School Trustee Candidates (pdf)
• What do Trustees do?
  • The Role of Boards of Education and Trustees in BC (pdf)
  • Boards of Education are Essential (pdf)