General Election Dates

WHEREAS the Local Government Act requires that elections for the mayor and all councillors of each municipality and elections for the electoral area directors of each regional district must be held every three years and must be held on the third Saturday of November in the year of the election; AND WHEREAS in many parts of British Columbia, the weather and road conditions in November are such that travelling for campaigning purposes, or to polling stations may be dangerous to residents, elections staff, and politicians alike, and may therefore discourage residents from attending polling stations; AND WHEREAS many Canadian residents travel south during the winter months to escape the inclement weather and are often absent during the month of November and as a result, do not have the opportunity to exercise their right to vote for local government elected officials: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Union of British Columbia Municipalities lobby the provincial government to amend section 36 of the Local Government Act to require general elections days to be held in October rather than November, in anticipation of a higher voter turnout.