GENERAL ELECTION INFORMATION





Date of Election


In accordance with The City of Winnipeg Act and The Local Authorities Election Act, the City of Winnipeg conducts an election on the fourth Wednesday of October every four years for the Office of Mayor and Councillor. The 2002 Civic Election will be held on OCTOBER 23, 2002. Polls are open from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. The election for the Office of School Trustee for the School Divisions within the boundaries of the City of Winnipeg is held in conjunction with the election for the Office of Mayor and Councillor.



Office of the Mayor and Councillor


The Mayor is elected at large. All eligible voters in the City of Winnipeg are entitled to cast one vote for the Office of Mayor. One Councillor is elected from each of the 15 wards which comprise the City of Winnipeg. Eligible voters cast one vote for the Office of Councillor in their respective Wards.



Electoral Ward Names


On November 15, 2001, the Winnipeg Wards Boundaries Commission established new boundaries and names for each of the 15 wards in the City of Winnipeg, which come into force on September 25, 2002, as follows:

Old Kildonan

Mynarski

Point Douglas

Daniel McIntyre

St. James

St. Charles

Charleswood - Tuxedo

River Heights - Fort Garry

Fort Rouge

St. Norbert

St. Vital

St. Boniface

Transcona

Elmwood - East Kildonan

North Kildonan

Ward Boundaries Commission Final Report



Community Committee and Ward Boundaries



Ward Boundaries

Community Committee and Ward Boundaries



Office of School Trustee


Each School Division is divided into a certain number of Wards and more than one candidate may be elected to the Office of School Trustee for each Ward.



School Division Names and Boundaries


On November 8, 2001, the Minister of Education, Training and Youth, announced that the number of School Divisions within the City of Winnipeg would be reduced from 9 to 6 by merging the following divisions:-
  • Fort Garry School Division with Assiniboine South School Division,
  • St. Boniface School Division with St. Vital School Division,
  • River East School Division with the urban portion of the Transcona-Springfield School Division;

and creating new division boundaries.

The cap on the maximum number of trustees in any single School Division was set at 9. School division information, including names, divisional and ward boundaries is not yet available.



Qualifications of Electors


The Local Authorities Election Act and The Public Schools Act, govern eligibility to vote for the Offices of Mayor, Councillor and School Trustee.



Qualifications of Electors for
Mayor and Councillor


Recent amendments contained in Bill 7 The Local Authorities Election Amendment Act assented to on May 23, 2002, further define the qualifications of non-resident owners for municipal elections and sets the maximum number of non-resident owners of a parcel of land who may vote at two.

The Local Authorities Election Act now provides:

Qualification of electors
5(1)   Subject to this Act, the right to have his name placed upon the list of electors of, and to vote at elections in, local authorities belongs to each of the following persons; that is to say, a person who

(a)     is a Canadian citizen of the full age of 18 years, or who will be 18 years of age at the date of the election, and is not disqualified under this Act, or otherwise by law prohibited, from voting; and

(b)     is an actual resident in the authority and will have been resident therein for a period of six months at the date of the election.

Qualification of non-resident owners for municipal elections
5(1.1) In an election in a municipality, a person who is a non-resident of the municipality has the right to be named in the list of electors and to vote, if he or she

(a)     has the qualifications of an elector stated in clause (1)(a); and

(b)     subject to subsection (1.3), has been for at least six months at the date of the election the registered owner of land that is assessed in the latest revised realty assessment roll of the municipality.

"Registered owner" defined
5(1.2) For the purpose of clause (1.1)(b), the registered owner of land is

(a)     a tenant or occupier of it, if his or her name is entered on the latest revised realty assessment roll as the owner of a right, interest, or estate in it;

(b)     if no person qualifies under clause (a), the person who purchased it under an agreement for sale that is subject to the Veterans' Land Act (Canada); or

(c)     if no person qualifies under clause (a) or (b), the owner.

Maximum of two non-resident voters per property
5(1.3) If three or more persons qualify as registered owners of the land under the applicable clause of subsection (1.2),

(a)     no more than two of them may register as non-resident owners; and

(b)     each person registered must do so with the written consent of the number of those persons who, together with the person registering, are a majority of the registered.

  • Despite the possibility of multiple property ownership, a person's name may be entered only once on the List of Electors. An elector is allowed only one vote for Mayor and may vote in only one Ward for Councillor.


  • Persons who have resided within the City of Winnipeg for six months prior to Election Day but who have moved to another Ward are still qualified to vote for Mayor and Councillor, but must vote in the Ward where they reside on Election Day.



Qualifications of Electors for School Trustee


The Public Schools Act provides that, for the purpose of electing School Trustees,

"an elector means a person entitled to vote under clause 5(1)a or 5(1)b of The Local Authorities Election Act."

  • An elector must be a resident in the School Division for six months prior to Election Day.


  • A property owner who does not reside in the School Division does not have the right to vote for School Trustee.



Council and its Powers


An ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING will be held on WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2002 at which Members of Council will be appointed or elected to other offices, including the Speaker, Deputy Speaker, the Standing Committees, various Sub-Committees, and Boards and Commissions. The Mayor and Councillors are required to attend all meetings of City Council and each Councillor must serve on one Standing Committee. In addition to each member serving on a Standing Committee, all Councillors are members of a Community Committee which meets monthly. Further, Members of Council are elected to various Boards and Commissions at the Organizational Meeting held in November of each year.

The powers of the City are exercised by Council. The Mayor and Councillors hold office for a term of four years. The Mayor is the head of Council and the chief officer of the City. The Mayor is chairperson of Executive Policy Committee and is an ex-officio member of each of the four Standing Committees. The powers of the City are defined in The City of Winnipeg Act. The administration and operating structure of the City is defined in The Organization By-law No. 7100/97.

City Council meets at least once a month on Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. in the Council Chamber, Council Building, 510 Main Street. Council sets the Schedule of Meetings for Council and its Committees, usually in November or December of the preceding year, but Special Meetings are not uncommon. The conduct and procedures followed at Council and Committee Meetings is set forth in The Procedure By-law No. 5400/90, and in accordance with the provisions of The City of Winnipeg Act.



Role of School Boards


The primary function of a school board is the determination of policy. These policies are, in effect, the laws under which a division or district operates. Implementation of that policy--that is, the day-to-day management of school business--is the role of the administrative staff hired by a school board.

A school board sets policy through the decisions it makes at public meetings. The Public Schools Act provides that "An act or proceeding of a school board that is not done or taken at a regular or special meeting of the school board, is not valid or binding on any person affected thereby" (Section 35). Combined with the requirement that "Every school board shall hold its meetings openly, and no person shall be excluded or removed from any meeting except for improper conduct" [Section 30(3)], legislation assures that school board business is conducted in an open manner.

In addition to full school board meetings, trustees also attend the meetings of any committees on which they serve. Most school boards have a number of standing committees that deal with areas such as finance, personnel, curriculum, and facilities. Special or ad hoc committees may also be appointed from time to time to deal with special projects or emerging issues. Unlike regular or special school board meetings, committee meetings do not have to be held in public, but may be held "in camera". These committees rarely make final decisions themselves. Their role generally is to investigate, deliberate, and report back to the full board. The board then has the option of adopting the recommendations of the committee at its public meeting, modifying any proposed course of action, or rejecting a committee report outright.

The decisions made by a school board at its meetings set the direction for the school division and district. The school board employs administrators to see that this direction is implemented in an effective and efficient manner. The two most senior administrators of a school division or district are the superintendent and the secretary-treasurer. By law, all school boards must employ a secretary-treasurer; he or she is a chief financial officer of the division or district. In addition, most school boards employ a superintendent, who is the division or district's chief educational officer. In some instances, both positions are held by the same individual. The Public Schools Act lists those responsibilities that a school board may delegate to its secretary-treasurer or superintendent. An effectively managed school division or district is one in which the senior administrators and school board work closely together, each respecting and drawing upon the other's areas of expertise.

Preparing for and participating in school board and committee meetings are the main functions of a school trustee. Although school trustees do not receive a salary for time spent on school board business, they do receive a payment referred to as an indemnity. This indemnity varies in amount from several hundred to several thousand dollars a year. Along with reimbursement for out of pocket expenses incurred by trustees in the course of school board business, this indemnity ensures that trustees are able to serve in that capacity without causing them undue financial hardship.

For additional information, please refer to the attached Guide to School Boards and Trusteeship in Manitoba, prepared by The Manitoba Association of School Trustees.

A Guide to School Boards and Trusteeship in Manitoba



Key Contact Persons


ELECTION OFFICE 986-8500
  E-mail:    elections@city.winnipeg.mb.ca
  Web Site:    www.city.winnipeg.mb.ca/clerks/election/election2002/intro.htm
CITY HALL INFORMATION SERVICE 986-2171
RETURNING OFFICER RICHARD KACHUR 986-2428
ENUMERATOR MARC LEMOINE 986-7131
REVISING OFFICER URSULA GOERES 986-2408
CAMPAIGN EXPENSES AND CONTRIBUTIONS OFFICER BILL TREYTIAK 257-2814
MANITOBA ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL TRUSTEES (M.A.S.T) HEATHER DEMETRIOFF 233-1595
ASSISTANT ENUMERATOR MICHAEL BRESCH 986-2555
ASSISTANT RETURNING OFFICERS MONIQUE WRIGHT 986-2185
BRENT OLYNYK 986-3831
GERRY BERKOWSKI 986-2893
BOB MACCALLUM 986-2136
WAYNE GULENCHYN 986-2454
JO-ANN PARK 986-3732
BONNIE GRESCHUK 986-2483
CAROL FREEMAN 986-3157
INGA SKUNDBERG 986-3856
DIANE TIMMINS 986-5414
MARC PITTET 986-4229
JOSIE MARQUES 986-4228
CARLOS GAMEIRO 986-6631


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