Elections & Assent Voting

Elections for directors to represent the electoral areas occur every four (4) years as part of the General Local Election system in British Columbia. The next local government elections will be held on October 15, 2022. Directors may be elected by acclamation (in the case of a single qualified candidate) or by voting (where there is more than one qualified candidate).

In the event a vacancy occurs for a director, a by-election to fill the vacancy will usually be held as soon as reasonably possible.

In addition to elections and by-elections, the Regional District may also hold a vote (assent voting/referendum) to determine public opinion on a matter, or to obtain the assent of the electors on a proposed bylaw.

General Information

Regional District of Central Kootenay Rural Area Directors are elected every four (4) years as part of the General Local Election system in British Columbia. 2022 is an election year, with local government elections occurring on October 15, 2022. In addition to the local government elections being held in all rural electoral areas an assent vote regarding the establishment of a Local Conservation Fund Service will be held in Electoral Area H. More information regarding the Area H Local Conservation Fund Assent Vote will be shared here when available.

Important Dates

Date Description
August 30-September 9 Nomination period
September 17-October 15 Campaign period
October 5 Advance voting opportunity
October 12 Additional advance voting opportunity - Area H (Slocan Valley) ONLY
October 15 General Voting Day (8:00 am-8:00 pm)
October 19  Official election results declared at 4:00 pm 

 


Voter Information

Who Can Vote?

As a resident you may vote in a General Local Election or Assent Voting Process if you meet all of the following criteria:

  1. You are a Canadian citizen;
  2. You are 18 years of age or older on or before general voting day;
  3. You are a resident of BC for at least 6 months immediately prior to the day of registration;
  4. You are a resident of the RDCK rural electoral area in which you are voting; and
  5. You are not disqualified by the Local Government Act or any other Act from voting in an election or be otherwise disqualified by law.

The criteria to determine residency are as follows:

  1. Person is a resident of the area where the person lives and to which, whenever absent, the person intends to return;
  2. Person may only be a resident of one area at a time for the purpose of voting in a local government election;
  3. Person does not change their area of residence until they have a new area of residence;
  4. Person does not cease to be a resident of an area by leaving the area for temporary purposes only;
  5. If a person establishes residency in a new area which is away from their usual area of residence for the purpose of attending an educational institution in the new area, the person may choose to vote in either area; but not in both.

As a non-resident you may vote if you own property in a RDCK rural electoral area and meet all of the following criteria:

  1. You are a Canadian citizen;
  2. You are 18 years of age or older on or before general voting day;
  3. You have lived in BC for at least 6 months immediately prior to the day of registration;
  4. You are the registered owner of real property on the day of registration (Note: the only persons who are registered owners of the real property, either as joint tenants or tenants in common, are individuals who are not holding the property in trust for a corporation or another trust);
  5. You must only register in relation to one piece of property in the jurisdiction;
  6. If more than one person owns the property, only one owner may register and that person must have the written consent of a majority of the other owners; and
  7. You are not disqualified by the Local Government Act or any other Act from voting in an election or be otherwise disqualified by law.

No corporation is entitled to be registered as an elector or have representative registered as an elector and no corporation is entitled to vote.

For more information regarding voter eligibility please consult the Voter's Guide to Local Elections in BC.

Voter Registration

To participate in the upcoming General Local Election and Assent Voting opportunities you must register as a voter in the rural electoral area in which you plan to vote. Opportunities for registration include:

1. Registration at the time of voting. Resident electors may register at the time of voting. To register at the time of voting a resident elector must produce two pieces of ID that prove who you are and where you live. One must have your signature. Acceptable forms of ID include:

  • BC Drivers License
  • BC CareCard
  • BC Identification Card
  • Citizenship Card
  • Credit or Debit Card
  • ICBC Certificate of Insurance
  • Residential Property Tax Notice
  • Social Insurance Card
  • Utility Bill
  • Forms of ID accepted at the discretion of the Presiding Election Official

2. Registration with the Provincial Voters List prior to August 15, 2022. Click here to register, or to check if you are already registered with Elections BC.

3. Registration with the Regional District of Central Kootenay prior to August 23, 2022. Click here to register, or to check if you are already registered with the RDCK. You may also email elections@rdck.bc.ca or contact the Chief Election Officer at 250-352-8173.

Notice of Advance Voter Registration  [PDF - 794 KB]

The Voters List

The Regional District of Central Kootenay uses the Provincial Voters' List as its List of Resident Electors. If you are registered as a provincial voter, you will automatically be registered as an elector. If you have previously registered as a non-resident property elector, you   will continue to be registered as an elector. To find out if you are on the List of Electors, please contact the Chief Election Officer at (250) 352-8173 or email elections@rdck.bc.ca

The Voters List will be available for inspection on, or after, August 29th. To view the Voters List please contact the Chief Elections Officer at (250) 352-8173 or email elections@rdck.bc.ca.

Voting Opportunities

Voting place locations will be advertised in local newspapers and posted on this web page, once an election or other voting opportunity has been declared by the Chief Election Officer. That will occur on or shortly after September 13th, 2022.

Election and Voter Assent Ballots

Ballots will be established on or shortly after the Declaration of Elections are issued on or shortly after September 17th.

As a registered voter you may request a mail in ballot between September 17th and October 5th. Ballots will be distributed between October 5 and October 10th. Ballots must be received by the Chief Elections Officer no later than October 15th. To request a mail order ballot please do so here or contact the Chief Elections Officer at (250) 352-8173 or email elections@rdck.bc.ca.

Contact:

Chief Election Officer
Tom Dool
Phone: (250) 352-8173
Email: tdool@rdck.bc.ca

Deputy Chief Election Officer
Angela Lund
Phone: (250) 352-8160
Email: alund@rdck.bc.ca 

The content on this page was last updated August 2 2022 at 11:32 AM

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