Municipal Elections and You

by Apathy is Boring Intern Patrick Burkhard — July 19, 2007

    Municipal elections for the most part fall to the bottom of the barrel when talking about political involvement.  While most people cite the low percentage of people voting in federal and provincial elections in recent years, the figures for municipal elections are often even lower, with some municipalities drawing only 20-30 % of the voting age public.  Scary, isn’t it?

    What is most amazing about this is that most often, municipalities control a lot of things that affect your life, like zoning permits, input into schooling, garbage and snow removal, policing and fire departments as well.  These are things that matter in day to day life, and sometimes people forget about this.  What we will thus present here is some quick and easy info about municipal elections to hopefully encourage you to be more active in your local community.  

    Municipal elections fall under the control of the provinces and territories, which set the rules as well as dates for all municipal elections.  Municipal elections most often are held to elect Mayors and City Councillors, as well as School Board Members or Trustees.  This can vary though according to the specific municipality.  Voting in municipal elections in Montreal, Quebec, as opposed to Elora, Ontario may be a little different.  Municipal elections themselves are held every 2, 3 or 4 years, depending on the province or territory.  Here is the breakdown:

•    2 Years:  Saskatchewan (rural), Nunavut (2 or 3 years), North West Territories (2 or 3 years)
•    3 Years:  Saskatchewan (urban), Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon
•    4 Years:  Quebec, Ontario, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, P.E.I., Newfoundland and Labrador, Manitoba. 

    Physically voting in municipal elections can also vary.  While all federal elections in Canada use a paper ballot and manual, which are old school voting methods (checking a box), provincial and municipal elections can use their own method.  This can mean anything from written, hand counted ballots to electronic voting machines.  Check with your municipality for more information. 

    As already mentioned, voting in local elections is heavily encouraged.  It is often the best and easiest way to make an impact on your life in terms of making positive change.  Furthermore, it is the 1st and best place to get involved in politics!  Want to get your feet wet? Run as a candidate and see what happens, even if you are a youth.  What is this you say; youth can enter the political fray?  That’s right, go out there and shake up your town, try and become the youngest ever elected mayor in Canada!  Even if you don’t win, you would be sure to turn a few heads in the process.  Did I forget to mention, “Hi there, my name is Jeff and I am running for mayor” can be a wicked pick up line on a Saturday night?  So get involved, contact your municipality and see how you can get involved today – even if that means voting on Election Day!