, , , ,

Whistler Election FAQ’s

Where and When do I vote?

Advance Voting Day 1: October 5, 2022, at the Whistler Public Library.

Advance Voting Day 2: October 8, 2002, at the Whistler Public Library.  

General Voting Day: October 15, 2022, at Myrtle Philip School.

Mail Ballot Voting: mail ballot packages will include a Registration Form for Residents and Non-Residents Property Electors. 

Can I Vote by Mail?

Yes!

All electors are eligible to vote by mail ballot if you are either a resident or non-resident property elector.

Requesting a Mail Ballot Package

In order to obtain a mail ballot, you must submit an Application to Vote by Mail to the RMOW no later than 4 p.m. on October 12, 2022. Applications are available here and at the front desk at Municipal Hall during regular business hours.

Your application can be submitted in person at Municipal Hall during regular hours, by email to election@whistler.ca, or delivered by Canada Post to the following address: Chief Election Officer, Resort Municipality of Whistler, 4325 Blackcomb Way, Whistler, BC, V8E 05X.

The Resort Municipality of Whistler will start sending out mail ballot packages on September 29, 2022. To be counted, your mail ballot must be received by the Chief Election Officer no later than 8 p.m. on Saturday, October 15, 2022.

 

Who is allowed to vote?
To vote as a resident or non resident property elector, you must meet all of the following qualifications:
-18 years or older on voting day,
-A Canadian citizen, a resident of B.C. for at least six months before registering, and not disqualified from voting under the Local Government Act or otherwise disqualified by law.
-As well, to vote as a resident you must have lived in Whistler for at least 30 days prior to registering; to vote as a property owner, you must be the registered owner of real property in Whistler for at least 30 days prior to registering, and if not the sole owner of the property, you must have the written consent of the majority of individuals registered as owners. You may only vote once regardless of how many properties you own in Whistler.

I own a Property in Whistler but I don’t live there, can I still vote?

YES. Non-resident electors must currently own property in Whistler.
To register as a non-resident elector you must meet the qualifications to vote and provide evidence of your identity and place of residence. You must provide two pieces of identification: one piece of identification must contain your identity and place of residence and at least one piece of identification must contain your signature. Examples of acceptable I.D. include a BC Driver’s License, automobile insurance, I.D. card, or BC Care Card.
If more than one person owns the property, only one owner may register and vote and that person must have the written consent of a majority of the other owners. You can only register in relation to one piece of property.
Click here to download the Non-Resident Property Elector Consent Form
You must also be prepared to sign a solemn declaration of your place of residence. If you do not comply with this requirement, you will not be registered to vote. Property owners whose property is registered in the name of a company are not qualified to vote.

How do I register to vote?

A person may register as a resident elector or a non-resident elector on general voting day or at any of the advance or special voting opportunities. To register as a resident elector you must meet the qualification to vote and provide evidence of your identity and place of residence. You must provide two pieces of identification: one piece of identification must contain your identity and place of residence and at least one piece of identification must contain your signature. Examples of acceptable I.D. include a BC Driver’s License, automobile insurance, I.D. card, or BC Care Card

Do I have to vote for six candidates?
NO, you can vote for as many as six but there is no minimum.

In the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) qualified voters will vote for 1 Mayor, 6 Councillors and 2 School Trustees (unless one or more of these positions are won by acclamation).

What do I need to bring to the polls?
You must provide two pieces of identification: one piece of identification must contain your identity and place of residence and at least one piece of identification must contain your signature. Examples of acceptable I.D. include a BC Driver’s License, automobile insurance, I.D. card, or BC Care Card.

Is my name on the current register of electors?
If you are not sure, you can find out by calling or visiting the Resort Municipality of Whistler Municipal Hall, 4325 Blackcomb Way, Whistler, BC, (604) 932-5535, or toll free at 1-866-932-5535 The office is open from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm, Monday to Friday (excluding holidays).

/by
, , , ,

Myths About Municipal Council and Some Frequently Asked Questions

Originally published in the Whistler Question November 9th 2017

 

When my boys were little, they would always groan when we went to the grocery store, “how long is this going to take?” they would whine, “do you have to talk to every single person you see?”. I would respond with “Well boys, you know people like to talk.”-“No dad… YOU like to talk!” they would correct.

So, here dear taxpayer, is a compilation of frequently asked questions I’ve fielded over the years.

Term Limits: There are no term limits for Council or the Mayor in Whistler, or any other municipality, in fact there are no term limits for any elected office in Canada. Constitutional scholars and decisions by the Supreme Court suggest that term limits would be a violation of section three of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The most famous example would be “Hurricane” Hazel McCallion who served as mayor of Mississauga Ontario for 36 years, her record was bested last year by Gord Krantz of Milton Ontario. It turns out that Canadians like experience in their politicians.

You can’t run for both Mayor and Council… Think about it. What if you won both seats? You either go for it all, or not. Strangely though, at least in British Columbia you can run for Mayor or council of multiple municipalities! Anyone remember Jag Bandari? In 2008, he ran for Mayor of Whistler and for a council seat in Surry (he lost both). You also, don’t have to live in the town you run in, sounds crazy but it actually works, a great example would be Pemberton’s former Mayor Jordan Sturdy—he lives in the SLRD, not Pemberton.

Financial things the RMOW can and can’t do: The RMOW (or any Municipality) can’t lend or give money to businesses, can’t run a deficit, and can’t charge a sales tax.
Municipalities only have two basic sources of revenue, property taxes and user fees. The RMOW already has a third source-the hotel tax. When the resort was incorporated, the province endowed us with our own act (The Resort Municipality of Whistler Act) which allows the RMOW to collect development charges, and Tourism Whistler to levy assessments on members who reside on resort lands. It really showed a lot of foresight by the Province to permit these tools to control development and enhance tourism.

The most frequently asked questions and the ones that community members have the least understanding of-surround housing. First, and let me be emphatic—the RMOW does not build housing— the RMOW does not use your tax dollars to build someone else a house. The next time I hear someone say “just take the money from the soccer fields and build housing” I’m going to scream! Here’s how employee housing gets built: a land owner has, let’s say a 10 acre plot, but it’s only zoned for a single family house, said land owner thinks “gee I could make some more money by subdividing this lot and building more houses”. When he takes this idea to council, council will say great, we’ll rezone the property but we’ll need you to build some employee housing units on the site as well. It really is that simple, and there is no cost to the taxpayer—unless you count the staff and council time to handle the rezoning application—but hey that’s their job. I’ll save all the multitude of other ways to build housing, for another column, till then dear taxpayer, if you have any other questions about politics and how it really works, next time you see me in the produce aisle… ask away!

Ralph Forsyth is an entrepreneur and ski instructor, he served as a Whistler Councillor from 2005 to 2011, He’s never been accused of being the smartest guy in the room or the calm voice of reason.

/by