Candidate Information

Are you eligible to run for office?

A person is qualified to be nominated, elected, and to hold office as a member of local government if they meet the following criteria:

• a Canadian citizen; and
• 18 years of age or older on general voting day: Saturday, October 5, 2019; and
• a resident of British Columbia for at least 6 months immediately before the day of registration; and
• not disqualified under the Local Government Act or any other enactment from being nominated for, being elected to or holding the office, or be otherwise disqualified by law.

A person is specifically disqualified as a candidate for office if they fall within any of the following categories:

• are a Judge of the Provincial Court, Supreme Court or Court of Appeal; or
• are an employee or salaried officer of the local government [unless a leave of absence is taken to run for office and agrees to resign if elected]; including if you are running as a regional district electoral area director when employed by a municipality which is a member of that regional district; or
• are under sentence for an indictable offence and are in custody or in prison; or
• are disqualified from candidacy under any law or enactment (ie failure to file a candidate disclosure statement in the previous election, not making an oath of office, etc.)

Nomination Packages

Nomination packages are now available for pick up at the RDN Administration Office.

Candidates may file nomination papers with the Chief Election Officer at the RDN Administration Office during the Nomination Period, beginning 9:00 am Tuesday, August 20, 2019 and ending at 4:00 pm Friday, August 30, 2019. Those persons unable to deliver nominations in person may swear the documents before a commissioner for taking affidavits in BC and mail, deliver or fax documents to the attention of the Chief Election Officer (CEO) by the deadline; however, if sent by facsimile, the CEO must receive the originals by 4:30 pm on Friday, September 6, 2019. From the time of receipt, the nomination documents are available to the public for inspection at the RDN Administration Office and on the website.

Additional Resources and Guides

For additional information please see Resources and FAQS.

Thinking of Running for Office?

• being an active participant in the local decision-making process
• being able to provide your expertise and experience to the community
• the opportunity to deal with issues, both small and large, in your community and to lead change.

• Attending Board and Committee meetings to learn about priority issues/projects and observe what being a Director on the Regional District of Nanaimo Board might be like
• Read the Regional District's key planning documents and reports
• Get to know key groups in the community to understand the diversity of interests in our area
• Research the internet for information about regional districts and basic facts about the local government system in BC.