
About School BoardsSchool Board ElectionsOn Becoming A School TrusteeElections for the office of school trustee are held every four years, in conjunction with municipal elections, on the fourth Wednesday in October. School board elections are governed by The Municipal Councils and School Boards Elections Act. Any differences between the conduct of school board and municipal elections are the result of specific provisions in The Public Schools Act, which is the provincial legislation that governs school board operations. QualificationsSection 22 of The Public Schools Act outlines the qualifications of a candidate for the office of school trustee. A person is qualified to be nominated for and elected as a trustee of a school board, if the person (a) is a Canadian citizen; Section 22(2) of The Public Schools Act specifies certain individuals who may not be nominated or serve as trustee. These are: (a) members of the Legislative Assembly or the Senate or House of Commons of
Canada; Candidates for school board office must actually reside in the school division or district
for which they are seeking election; they are not eligible for office if they are non-resident
property-owners or rate-payers. However, individuals do not need to be residents of the Once elected, school trustees will normally hold office until the expiration of their term,
at which time they must decide whether to seek re-election. There are, however, circumstances
in which a trustee’s seat can be declared vacant. These are outlined in Section A school board of a school division or school district shall declare a seat vacant and… order an election to fill that seat when the trustee elected to that seat: (a) is deceased; or If potential candidates for office doubt their ability to attend meetings on a regular basis (usually a minimum of twice a month), or if they plan to move beyond the boundaries of their school division or district in the immediate future, they may want to reconsider their decision to run for office. Under Section 39.6(1) of The Public Schools Act, a trustee will also be disqualified from
holding office if he or she: (i) an offence punishable by imprisonment of five years or more, or When a trustee is disqualified under this section, he or she remains disqualified from being nominated, elected, or appointed as a trustee for four years from the day he or she is first disqualified. |
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