Candidates

You are eligible to stand as a candidate if:

• you are a Canadian citizen;
• you are at least 18 years of age;
• you have, for at least twelve consecutive months immediately preceding the day nominations close, been ordinarily resident in the electoral district; and
• you are not disqualified by sections 18, 19 and 20 of the Local Authorities Elections Act.

You are not eligible to be a candidate if:

• you are a Judge, Territorial Judge, Youth Justice Court Judge, or Justice of the Peace;
• you are a member of the Legislative Assembly;
• you are a full time permanent employee of the City;
• you are an election officer;
• you have been convicted of a major election offence under the Local Authorities Elections Act within the three years immediately preceding election day; or
• you have been convicted of an offence punishable by imprisonment for five years or more within the three years immediately preceding election day, or whose imprisonment as a result of the conviction terminates within the three years immediately preceding election day;
• you are an assessor or auditor of the City of Yellowknife;
• you are personally indebted to the City for a sum exceeding $500.00 for more than 90 days (other than taxes described below);
• you have a controlling interest in a private or public corporation that is indebted to the municipal corporation for a sum exceeding $500 for more than 90 days (other than the taxes described below);
• you have not paid all of your municipal taxes before December 31 of the year in which the taxes are levied; or
• you have been in a conflict under the Conflict of Interest Act and there is a Court Order prohibiting you from becoming a candidate.

It is the responsibility of each candidate to verify their eligibility to be nominated.

Filing your nomination
Your nomination must be filed on the prescribed form which can be obtained from the Returning Officer at City Hall or under the Nomination Package link below.

Nominators
Your form must be signed by two people, who are eligible to vote in the election, in the presence of a Notary Public, a Commissioner for Oaths for the Northwest Territories, or the Returning Officer.
For each nominator, the form must include that person's name, street address and signature.

Candidate
The nomination form requires that you give consent to the nomination and that you make a declaration stating that you are eligible for nomination and not subject to any of the disqualifications as set out in the Local Authorities Elections Act. You must swear or affirm the declaration before a Notary Public, a Commissioner for Oaths for the Northwest Territories, or the Returning Officer.

Filing the nomination form
The completed form is to be filed with the Returning Officer by the close of nominations.

Withdrawing
Pursuant to s.46(1) of the Local Authorities Elections Act, where more than the required number of candidates are nominated, any person nominated may, within 48 hours after the close of nominations, withdraw his or her name as a candidate by filing written notice of withdrawal with the Returning Officer.

No late nominations
The Returning Officer cannot accept late nominations. Be sure that your nomination is filed on time and is accurately filled out.

Are you passionate about your community?

Are you interested in listening to a wide-range of ideas from residents?

Are you able to make decisions in the public's interest?

If you are willing to invest your time to understand the issues put before Council and make decisions that benefit the community as a whole, not only for the present but for the future, you should consider running for Office.

The demands on your time will be heavy.  You will be elected for four-year term of office which begins on Monday, November 7, 2022.  During your term, you will be required to:

• attend regular meetings of Council which are scheduled for the 2^nd and 4^th Monday evenings of the month at 7:00 p.m., in the City Hall Council Chamber;
• attend meetings of the Governance and Priorities Committee which is a Committee of the Whole.  The Governance and Priorities Committee meets on the 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd and 4^th Monday each month at 12:05 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chamber;
• attend meetings of other boards and agencies to which you are appointed as Council's representative;
• attend conferences, conventions, seminars, and workshops for training and discussion;
• attend social and other events promoting your municipality.

You will also need to spend time reading and talking with residents, your colleagues on City Council and others.  This will all be part of the preparation for meetings and will help you to make informed decisions.

As a member of City Council, you will have the opportunity to influence the future of Yellowknife. City Council sets priorities for the corporation through Council's Strategic Plan, the Budgeting process and provides governance through the adoption of policies and by-laws.

Individual members of Council do not have the power to commit Yellowknife to any expenditure or to direct the activities of City employees.  Your power as a member of Council depends on your ability to persuade the other members of Council to adopt your view.  Decisions of Council are made, by resolutions in accordance with the Council Procedure By-law No. 4975, at Council Meetings.

Election Signs and Campaign Material

Please refer to Election Sign By-law No. 4968 for rules governing all election signs placed on City property, and the Local Authorities Elections Act with respect to campaign materials.

Any Election Sign placed in an Election Sign Zone shall be placed above-ground and shall not
penetrate the ground it is placed on.

Finally, please note that the Local Authorities Elections Act requires that all campaign signs and any supports or weights used to secure the signs be taken down within seven (7) days following the election.  Any signs and or supports remaining after that date on City land may be removed by the City at the cost of the respective Candidate.

Agents

A candidate or one authorized agent of the candidate, but not both, may be present at a Voting Station during the time for voting. The candidate or one authorized agent per ballot box, may be present at a Voting Station during tabulation of the ballots.  Agents must provide written authorization from the candidate to the Election Staff indicating that they are appointed as an agent to act on behalf of the candidate. 

Contributions

There are currently no regulations with regard to campaign contributions. 

Maximum Expense

There are currently no regulations with regard to expenses.

No Campaign Zone

The Local Authorities Elections Act states that no person shall post, erect or place campaign material within 25m of a Voting Station. Campaign material means a sign, poster, placard, pamphlet, advertisement, banner or other material promoting or opposing the election of a candidate. This does not restrict a candidate or other person from transporting an elector to and from a Voting Station on Election Day, but if campaign material is displayed on the vehicle the driver may only stop at the Voting Station long enough for the voter to exit or enter the vehicle.

The following are the No Campaign Zones that are in effect:

• Voting Station - Multiplex
• Voting Station - Tree of Peace Friendship Centre

*GPC = Governance and Priorities Committee, which is comprised of all Members of Council 

The Candidate Nomination period for the 2022 Yellowknife Municipal Election is now closed. 

Members of Council are paid in accordance with the Council Remuneration By-law.  Annual adjustments for 2019, 2020 and 2021 were 2%, 1.6% and 0.7% respectively.