Candidate Information

Are you eligible to run for office?

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

• are a Canadian citizen; and
• are 18 years of age or older on general voting day: Saturday, June 4, 2022; and
• are a resident of British Columbia for at least six months immediately before the date of nomination; and
• are not disqualified under the Local Government Act or any other enactment from being nominated for, being elected to, or holding the office, or otherwise disqualified by law.

A person is specifically disqualified from being nominated for, being elected to, or holding office on a local government, 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 they 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
• have been found guilty of an election offence; or
• are disqualified from candidacy under any law or enactment (i.e., 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 pickup in person at the Regional District of Nanaimo (RDN) Administration Office, 6300 Hammond Bay Road, Nanaimo, BC.  Nomination packages are also available electronically at these links:

• Nomination Package for Candidates
• Nomination Package for Elector Organizations

Candidates may file nomination papers with the Chief Election Officer at the RDN Administration Office during the Nomination Period, beginning at 9:00 a.m. Tuesday, April 19, 2022 and ending at 4:00 p.m. Friday, April 29, 2022. Those persons unable to deliver nominations in person may swear the documents before a commissioner for taking affidavits in B.C. and mail, deliver, fax or email documents to the attention of the Chief Election Officer (CEO) by the deadline; however, if documents are sent by fax or email, the CEO must receive the originals by 4:30 p.m. on Friday, May 6, 2022. 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?

Serving your community can be very rewarding and there are many good reasons to run for office including:

• 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.

Prepare yourself:

• Attend Board and Committee meetings to learn about priority issues/projects and observe what being a Director on the RDN 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 B.C.