Election

2011 GENERAL LOCAL ELECTIONS

FAQs

Official Election Results

2011 Declaration of Candidates

Campaign Financial Disclosure Forms

Provincial & Federal Elections

FAQs

• When is General Voting Day?
• When and where is 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 is the identification requirement in order to vote?
• What forms of ID are acceptable?
• Where do people go to vote?
• What provisions are made to assist disabled persons?
• What provisions are made to assist people using other languages?
• Can people vote in the City of Langley 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?

When is General Voting Day?    Back to top

General Voting Day is November 19, 2011 from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm at Nicomekl Elementary School, 20050 53rd Avenue.

When and where is advance voting?     Back to top

Advance Voting will take place at Timms Community Centre, 20355 Douglas Crescent on November 8 from 1:00 pm to 8:00 pm, November 9 from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm, November 10 from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm and on November 16 from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm.

Do voters have to register in advance of General Voting Day?    Back to top

No.  The City of Langley uses the Provincial Voters List from Elections BC.  People who are not already registered on the Provincial Voter's List, or who did not register prior to June 30, 2011 may still register to vote at the time of voting.

How do electors register to vote?     Back to top

If you are not already on the Provincial Voters List, you may register at the time of voting. 

Do voters have to re-register to vote for each election?    Back to top

No.  If you voted in the last provincial, federal or municipal election, then it is very likely that you are already registered to vote for the 2011 City of Langley Local Government Election.

The City uses the Provincial Voters List for municipal 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 early registration period (prior to June 30, 2011) to ensure that your current registration information in 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.

Who is eligible to vote?    Back to top

You may vote in the City of Langley Local Government Election as a resident elector if you:

1. Are a Canadian citizen;
2. Are, or will be, 18 years of age or more on General Voting Day (Saturday, November 19, 2011);
3. Have lived in BC for at least 6 months prior to registration (May 17, 2011 is the last day to meet the residency requirement if registering on General Voting Day);
4. Have lived in the City of Langley (or owned property in the City of Langley for a non-resident elector) for at least 30 days prior to registering to vote.  (October 19, 2011 is the last day to meet local residency requirement if registering to vote on General Voting Day); and
5. Are not disqualified from voting by the Local Government Act or any other enactment. 

What is the identification requirement in order to vote?    Back to top

If you are already registered on the Voters List, you will recieve a voters card.  Please bring your voters card, plus an additional piece of identification with you on voting day so that we can assist you as efficiently as possible.

If you are not already registered on the Voters List, and you are eligible to vote, you must bring the following ID at the time of voting:

• At least 2 ID documents that provide evidence of your identity and place of residence, at least one of which also contains your signature

OR

•  At least 2 ID documents that provide evidence of your identity, at least one of which also contains your signature, and you must make a solemn declaration as to your place of residence.

What forms of ID are acceptable?    Back to top

The following are examples of acceptable identification documents (this is not an exhaustive list):

• Canadian Passport
• BC Driver's Licence
• Certificate of Vehicle Insurance
• BC ID Card
• Credit Cards or Debit Cards
• Birth Certificate
• Canadian Citizenship Card
• Social Insurance Card
• BC Care Card or BC Gold Care Card
• Property Tax Notice
• Utility Bill (BC Hydro, Fortis, Shaw, Telus, etc.) 

Where do people go to vote?    Back to top

Advance voting will take place at Timms Community Centre, 20355 Douglas Crescent and General Voting will take place at Nicomekl Elementary School, 20050 53 Avenue.

What provisions are made to assist disabled persons?    Back to top

On General Voting day and on Advance Voting days, people may request `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 the designated voting place.  If an elector requires assistance to read or mark a ballot, they are permitted to have the assistance of another person in the voting booth.  Also, every effort is made to ensure that all voting places are accessible.

What provisions are made to assist people using other languages?    Back to top

The City makes an effort to have 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 with them to translate.

Ballots are not available in other languages.

Can people vote in the City of Langley if they live elsewhere but own property here?    Back to top

The Local Government Act allows people who are not residents of a municipality to vote if they own property within a given jurisdiction.  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 the City of Langley may vote in Vancouver as a resident elector and in the City of Langley as a non-resident property elector.  However, a person who lives in the City of Langley, and owns additional properties in the City of Langley may only vote once in the City of Langley as a resident elector.  The property must be owned personally and not by a corporation since corporate voting has long since been eliminated. 

When can people be nominated as candidates in the election?    Back to top

The nomination period begins on October 4, 2011 at 9:00 am and ends on Friday, 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?    Back to top

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 municipal 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.  There is a $100.00 nomination deposit required at the time of filing. 

What is an elector organization?    Back to top

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 and their disclosure statements are available for inspection by the public at the local government office 120 days after General Voting Day.

What is a campaign organizer?    Back to top

Campaign organizers are individuals 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?    Back to top

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 statment applies to all candidates and elector organizations, whether or not contributions were received or election expenses were incurred.

This is the first municipal election where campaign organzers will be required to also file campaign financing disclosure statements.  For campaign organizers, the requirement to file is triggered once the organizer has incurred election expenses greater than $500 or has recieved campaign contributions greather than $500, or sooner if the organizer so chooses.

2011 Candidates    Back to top

Election Results    Back to top

                                 Campaign Financial Disclosure Forms

 Red Text reflects candidates elected to office.

Provincial & Federal Elections    Back to top

Provincial Election

When is the next provincial election?

Tuesday, May 14, 2013. No earlier date has been confirmed yet, only speculated.

If a person registers for the federal election are they automatically registered for the provincial election?

No, residents need to register with Elections BC to get on the provincial voters list, which is used by municipalities for the municipal election. Contact Elections BC at 1-800-661-8683 or register online at http://www.elections.bc.ca

Federal Election

When is the Federal General Election?

The next fixed election date is October 19, 2015. The Chief Electoral Officer may recommend an alternate day for a fixed-date general election if the date set for polling is not suitable for that purpose.

That said, the Canada Elections Act does not prevent a general election from being called at another date.

General elections are called when, on the advice of the Prime Minister, the Governor General dissolves Parliament. The Governor in Council (the Governor General, acting on the advice of Cabinet) sets the date of the election.

How do I register for the Federal Election?

Call Elections Canada 1-800-463-6868 or visit their website at http://www.elections.ca

Who is eligible to vote in the federal election?

Canadian citizen, will be 18 or older on Election Day and are registered to vote.

Am I registered to vote in the Federal Election?

If you are registered to vote you should receive a voter information card in the mail between April 8 and April 13. If you do not get a voter information card contact Elections Canada.