Running for Council
Reasons why you should run for Council:
- You care about your Community!
- You want to bring perspectives of your demographic to the decision-making table
- You have new ideas that could benefit your community as a whole
- You want to make a positive difference in the quality of life in your community
What knowledge and skills are required to be an elected official?
It is not necessary to have education or experience in a government setting to run for Council. However, these attributes are important:
- Excellent communications skills
- Involvement in the community (volunteering)
- Ability to organize and prioritize
- Excellent problem-solving skills
- Diplomatic
- Work well in a team environment
- Make decisions based on fairness and quality (despite personal feelings), for the betterment of the entire community
It will also be useful to understand:
- Government structure, governing bodies, their roles and procedures
- Rules guiding council meetings, behaviour and action
- How to interact with the Community as a Council Member
- General knowledge and understanding of Village documents (Official Community Plan, Annual Report, Asset Management Plan, Five Year Financial Plan, Annual Tax Rates etc.)
- How to interact with other governments and media
Any Canadian citizen who is eligible to vote in the province of British Columbia is qualified to run for election as a Council member unless he or she:
- works for the Village of Pemberton or the Squamish Lillooet Regional District (unless a leave of absence is taken to run and the person agrees to resign if elected);
- is a Federal public service employee (unless they have first requested and obtained prior permission from the Public Service Commission of Canada);
- is a Provincial Court, Supreme Court or Court of Appeal judge;
- has been convicted of an indictable offence and is in custody;
- is involuntarily committed to a psychiatric or other institution; OR
- has been disqualified under the Community Charter or Local Government Act or any law in force in British Columbia (e.g. guilty of an election offence, failing to file a campaign financing disclosure statement, etc.).
The Inspector of Municipalities maintains the List of Disqualified Candidates who were disqualified for not filing the required campaign financing disclosure documents within 150 days after the most recent general local election. Click here for more information
Candidates do not need to live or own property in the Village; however, they must have resided in British Columbia for at least six (6) consecutive months before filing nomination documents. For more information about becoming a candidate, pick up or download a nomination package.
Resources for those running for Council:
- What Every Candidate Needs to Know
- Candidate's Guide to Local Elections in BC
- Guide to Supporting a Candidate
- Elector Organization Guide
- Campaign Financing Rules and Information (Regulated by Elections BC)