For anyone who is thinking of running in the Ontario municipal elections this fall, the deadline to register as a candidate is Friday afternoon.
All 444 municipalities in Ontario will each hold elections on Oct. 26 for mayor, councillor and school board trustee positions.
In order to be on the ballot or to withdraw from being on the ballot, the appropriate paperwork must be filed with the local municipal clerk’s office by 2 p.m. on Friday. Officials have until 4 p.m. on Aug. 24 to certify or reject nominations.
In Ontario, if there is only one certified candidate for an open position they will be appointed to the position. If a position doesn’t have any candidates, it will be up to the clerk in the municipality to issue a special callout for nominations.
Here’s some key information from Ontario’s guide for candidates to keep in mind as the deadline approaches:
In order to run for municipal office, prospective candidates must be 18 years old by the time of submitting nomination paperwork and have Canadian citizenship. All potential candidates must live in the municipality they are looking to run in. If running for a councillor position, a prospective candidate doesn’t need to live in the ward in which they are running.
There are several restrictions under Ontario law that prevent prospective candidates for filing to run for a municipal council position. They include people serving as a judge, an MP, an MPP, a senator, a municipal employee who hasn’t resigned or taken an unpaid leave of absence, an inmate in a correctional institution, or someone generally not eligible to vote in an election.
School board employees must also take an unpaid leave of absence or resign if they’re looking to run.
In order to submit council nomination paperwork for a municipality with more than 4,000 electors, a prospective candidate needs 25 original signatories from people eligible to vote in the election. The signatories must live in the municipality and include their full address.
Anyone looking to run as a school board trustee or in a municipality with less than 4,000 electors does not have to submit endorsement signatures.
Potential candidates also need to submit a nomination fee of $200 if running for the head of a municipal council or $100 for any other position. The fees will be refunded if campaign financial statements are submitted before the required deadline.
