[0:14] Okay.

[0:17] Right? Uh we'll get started. So, good evening and thank you for coming

[0:21] tonight. Um so, this is a joint information session and it's a

[0:25] partnership between the County of Middlesex and all the lower tiers within

[0:29] the County of Middlesex. And happy to see everyone here to learn more about um

[0:34] being a candidate running for election. So, um we'll pass this over to Paul.

[0:43] Yeah, thank you very much. Um my name's Paul Shipway and I'm the County CAO for

[0:47] Middlesex County and uh you want to introduce yourself as well?

[0:50] Hi, I'm Tiffany Farrell. I'm the CAO for the Municipality of Middlesex Centre.

[0:55] And we're very appreciative uh for Middlesex Centre hosting us all here

[0:59] tonight and thank you for everyone joining us in person and all those for

[1:02] joining us online. Uh and this will be posted later and it just is another

[1:06] example of how in Middlesex County we all work together to try to deliver

[1:10] shared outcomes. So, we'll do a brief overview uh of the game plan tonight and

[1:15] is that your slide or mine? Um yours. Okay.

[1:18] Uh so, we'll go through county and local

[1:21] staff presentations uh speaking a little bit about what's done locally and what's

[1:25] done at the county and then we're going to turn it over to the Ministry of

[1:28] Municipal Affairs and Housing for uh a larger in-depth uh presentation about

[1:33] the election process and then we'll also also have county and local clerk booths

[1:39] uh over in the uh in the community center. Community center, thank you very

[1:43] much uh where you can ask individualized questions from your specific

[1:47] municipality or the county.

[1:52] Thanks. So, starting off Middlesex County. So, uh we currently operate out

[1:56] of 399 Rideout in the city of London, also known as the old courthouse. Uh,

[2:01] and some of the things that county council and county government oversees

[2:06] is, uh, regional economic development and tourism. So, uh, on the regional

[2:11] scale, emergency management coordination. So, again, we support

[2:14] local municipalities with that. Uh, probably actually our largest service

[2:19] area, Middlesex-London Paramedic Services, so land ambulance services.

[2:23] Uh, county planning and development, uh, county roads, bridges, traffic signals,

[2:28] and and controls. So, that would be your arterial roads within the county. Uh,

[2:32] human services, which covers, uh, child care and early on, uh, Ontario Works and

[2:38] housing in partnership with the city of London. Uh, long-term care services, so

[2:42] we have Strathmere Lodge, uh, out in Strathroy. Forestry and natural

[2:46] heritage, this one's near and dear to my heart, but the county has, uh, over

[2:50] 1,000 hectares of county forest, uh, that contribute to to the overall

[2:55] well-being within the county. And then, county libraries, which we operate in

[2:58] conjunction with the local municipalities, embedding those basic

[3:02] and, uh, comprehensive branches out in the community where our residents get

[3:06] services from.

[3:10] So, when I talk about the responsibilities of our local

[3:13] municipalities, I'm referring to the services and operations that impact your

[3:18] daily lives. We look after local roads, water, and wastewater services, and

[3:23] recreational facilities. We also handle waste collection and disposal, enforce

[3:27] property standards and bylaws, and provide fire protection, maintain parks,

[3:31] and run a wide range of community programs.

[3:34] On top of that, we guide community growth and development through land use

[3:38] planning and zoning, issue building permits, and support local

[3:42] economic development. We keep our public spaces clean and safe, operate community

[3:48] centers, and deliver cultural and recreational programming to help build

[3:51] vibrant, engaged communities. A key part of all of this is our commitment to

[3:55] customer service as we are the closest level of government to the residents and

[4:00] we are responsive to the community needs as much as we can. We strive to be

[4:04] approachable and responsive making sure that when residents need information,

[4:09] support, or access to services, they're met with professionalism and care.

[4:14] Our goal is to ensure that essential services are not only accessible and

[4:17] reliable, but also delivered with a focus on meeting the unique needs of

[4:22] every individual in our community. Now, building off of what Paul had just

[4:26] mentioned with what the county does, there are several areas where county and

[4:30] local municipalities responsibilities intersect or require close coordination.

[4:36] For example, issues like transportation and emergency emergency management often

[4:41] involve both levels working together to ensure effective service delivery and

[4:45] resource management. This collaboration is essential for addressing complex

[4:49] challenges and providing seamless services to the community. So, it is

[4:53] important that the municipality at the local level and the county work together

[4:57] hand-in-hand.

[5:02] Next up, a bit of an overview of the provincial government. So, we are

[5:05] creatures of the province and operate under their legislative regimes, but

[5:09] also to provide an example of the things the province does that we do not do. And

[5:14] that's generally hospitals, health care, and health cards, natural resources, so

[5:18] Ministry of Natural Resources, Ministry of Education, so oversight of both the

[5:23] public and separate school systems, liquor sale and regulations, although

[5:27] there's some bleed with local municipalities there as well. Provincial

[5:30] highways like the 401 and the 402, driver's licenses, community and social

[5:35] services, so Middlesex County or the City of London deliver some services on

[5:40] behalf of the province, but the province set sets the rules and funding envelopes

[5:44] for those programs, uh property and civil rights, uh administration of

[5:49] justice, so the courts. Those are some high-level things that are coordinated

[5:53] at the provincial level.

[5:57] So, it is important to clarify common misconceptions about the roles of each

[6:01] level of government. Sometimes residents may be unsure about whether a service or

[6:05] responsibility falls under the county or their local municipality or the

[6:09] provincial or federal level. By understanding the division of duties,

[6:13] residents can better navigate their local government and access the

[6:16] appropriate services. So, when we're talking about the federal government,

[6:20] they manage things like national defense, immigration, citizenship,

[6:24] Indigenous Affairs, international trade, criminal law, postal services, and the

[6:29] regulation of interprovincial and international transportation and

[6:33] communications. It also provides equalization payments and other

[6:37] transfers to provinces and territories, which can in turn affect the funding

[6:41] available for our local services here at the municipality.

[6:45] The level of government, um and all these levels of government often

[6:49] intersect with municipalities. And for example, provincial policies shape

[6:53] municipal land use planning and environmental regulations, while federal

[6:56] infrastructure grants support local infrastructure, such as our roads and

[7:00] water. Emergency response, public health

[7:03] initiatives, and economic development programs frequently require all three

[7:08] levels of government to cooperate, ensuring that services reach residents

[7:11] efficiently and effectively. And by working together, the federal,

[7:15] provincial, and municipal governments help build strong communities across

[7:19] Canada.

[7:23] So, now when we're looking at our local council.

[7:27] So, the local council is the elected governing body of a municipality.

[7:31] Councils are responsible for making decisions on local policies, bylaws,

[7:36] budgets, and services that directly impact residents. This includes areas

[7:41] such as land use planning, waste management, recreational facilities, and

[7:45] local roads. Councilors, led by a mayor, represent the interests of their

[7:50] citizens and work to ensure that municipal operations align with the

[7:54] community priorities. Local councils also act as a bridge

[7:59] between residents and higher levels of government. They implement provincial

[8:03] directives and at times collaborate with federal programs while advocating for

[8:07] the needs of their communities. Through public meetings and consultations,

[8:11] councils encourage citizen participation, helping to shape

[8:15] decisions that foster vibrant and sustainable communities across Canada.

[8:23] When looking at our local committees and boards,

[8:26] a local board or committee is a group established by a municipality to oversee

[8:31] specific areas of community interest. Here at Middlesex Centre, some of these

[8:35] include the Community Services Advisory Committee, Economic Development Advisory

[8:40] Committee, and there's uh committees and boards with respect to planning matters.

[8:45] Members of these groups are typically appointed by council, often through a

[8:49] formal application and selection process, to ensure diverse

[8:52] representation and expertise. Their work helps to ensure that

[8:56] municipal decisions reflect the perspectives and needs of the community.

[9:01] Through their work, committees and boards assist in the development and

[9:04] review of municipal policies, oversee specific community projects, and help to

[9:08] engage residents in local governance. Their recommendations are brought

[9:12] forward to council for approval, contributing to transparent and informed

[9:16] municipal operations. By involving citizens directly, these groups foster

[9:21] greater community participation and help ensure that local services and

[9:25] initiatives reflect the needs and priorities of its residents.

[9:32] Now looking at local councilors and the time commitment, local councilors

[9:36] typically devote considerable time to their roles, often attending two council

[9:41] meetings each month. For example, here at Middlesex Centre, we normally have

[9:45] two meetings a month. One meeting is held in the evening and one during the

[9:49] day, though this schedule can differ across municipalities within the county.

[9:55] Councilors are required to also participate in committee and board

[9:58] meetings with sessions scheduled both during daytime and evening hours.

[10:03] Here at Middlesex Centre, by offering meetings at varied times throughout the

[10:06] day, munici- like our municipality does aim to engage all community members,

[10:11] incl- including those who may not work the traditional 9-5, ensuring that local

[10:16] governance remains accessible and representative of the entire population.

[10:21] Additionally, there's other time commitments for our councilors. While

[10:25] not always required, councilors can anticipate calls on their time to attend

[10:29] community events, participate at conferences such as AMO and ROMA, and

[10:34] respond to residents when they have concerns.

[10:38] Pass back over to Paul.

[10:41] Yeah, wonderful job on the local and county council then is composed of 10 10

[10:46] members, including the mayor from each municipality and sometimes the deputy

[10:50] mayor. So, if you're in Strathroy Caradoc, Middlesex Centre, or Thames

[10:54] Centre, the deputy mayor also sits on county council.

[10:58] Each year right now, the warden amongst those 10 members is elected and serves

[11:03] for a year and really leads the county council. And county council generally

[11:07] meets twice a month on the second and fourth Tuesday at 1:00 p.m.

[11:15] Then when we look at county committees and boards, much like local

[11:19] municipalities, the county council also has a number of advisory boards and

[11:23] committees and then also has Middlesex London Paramedic Services, which

[11:26] oversees the operations of MLPS, Middlesex County Library Board,

[11:31] Middlesex-London Health Unit, and a number of external agencies. Generally,

[11:36] a member of Middlesex County Council will sit on two additional committees or

[11:41] boards. There's approximately 18 meetings each year on top of special

[11:47] ones and events. And being a county councilor is a

[11:50] significant commitment on top of your local commitments. So for those mayors

[11:55] and deputy mayors that sit on County Council, it's it's a an additional time

[12:00] commitment there.

[12:06] So roles and responsibility of counselors. So this is guided by section

[12:11] 224 of the Municipal Act. It is a very lengthy

[12:15] section that you would pay a lot of attention to as a municipal councilor,

[12:20] but I'm only going to highlight a few things that

[12:22] are included there. So one is the councilors act as the voice of the

[12:27] community advocating for the needs and interests of residents within their

[12:31] municipality. They work to ensure that local policies and decisions reflect

[12:35] those community priorities. They also develop and evaluate the

[12:39] programs, policies, and services the municipality provides. They're

[12:43] responsible for shaping, reviewing, and assessing municipal programs, policies,

[12:47] and services to ensure that they meet the needs of the community. And this

[12:51] includes participating in decision-making processes and evaluating

[12:53] the effectiveness of municipal initiatives.

[12:56] They maintain the financial integrity of the municipality. Councilors oversee the

[13:01] municipality's finance finances by approving budgets, monitoring

[13:05] expenditures, and ensuring that public resources are used responsibly.

[13:10] Their stewardship helps maintain fiscal accountability and sustainability within

[13:14] your communities. Now councilors are responsible for

[13:17] addressing inquiries, concerns, and feedback from residents in a timely and

[13:21] respectful manner. They listen actively to community members, work

[13:25] collaboratively to resolve issues, and strive to foster positive relationships

[13:29] between the municipality and its citizens.

[13:34] And I think the legislative services teams from across the county have done a

[13:37] wonderful job putting together this presentation and specifically citing the

[13:41] sections of the Municipal Act. And it drives home that both as counselors, as

[13:45] heads of council, and as staff, uh we're under the the direction and function of

[13:51] provincial legislation. So, much like the role of a counselor is defined

[13:55] within the Municipal Act, uh so is the role and responsibility of the head of

[13:59] council. So, section 225 speaks to council, uh the head of council that

[14:03] provides leadership to the council and presides over meetings. So, there's a a

[14:07] lot of fun stuff in procedural bylaws and parliamentary procedures for all our

[14:11] clerks in the group. Uh and then generally works to enhance the economic,

[14:14] social, and environmental uh well-being uh of the municipality and its

[14:19] residents. And then on top of that, represents uh the municipality at

[14:23] official functions, and generally speaks as a spokesperson uh for the

[14:27] municipality or the county.

[14:32] Now, something that's new, um relatively new for many of us, is the strong

[14:37] mayors. So, in certain municipalities, heads of council is granted strong mayor

[14:42] powers. Now, effective May 1st, 2025, Ontario extended the strong mayor powers

[14:48] to heads of council of single and lower-tier municipalities with councils

[14:52] of six members or more, which for the for the County of Middlesex includes the

[14:57] Municipality of Middlesex Centre, Strathroy-Caradoc, Southwest Middlesex,

[15:02] and North Middlesex. Now, these strong mayor powers are intended to be used to

[15:06] accelerate housing, infrastructure, and transit projects. The powers allow the

[15:12] mayor to propose budgets, hire and fire department heads, veto bylaws not

[15:17] aligned with provincial priorities, and create committees of council.

[15:26] And then us standing in the room, county and local municipal staff. So, staff's

[15:30] role is generally to implement the decisions of council and administer

[15:35] municipal programs and services. So, generally we would work to provide

[15:39] advice and recommendations to county to council, county council or local

[15:43] council, and then execute on those decisions of council

[15:47] locally or and at the county level the CAO ensures the efficient and effective

[15:52] operations of the municipality and generally has oversight of all the

[15:56] staff. The The element that the CAO is generally the one employee of the

[16:01] council. And then within that there are certain positions such as the clerk,

[16:07] treasurer, chief building official that has statutory responsibilities under

[16:11] various pieces of legislation that they are beholden to and they and they cannot

[16:16] deviate from those.

[16:20] Still me? Wonderful. Council and staff work closely to ensure the success of

[16:26] the municipality and that's really where we can deliver the best outcomes for

[16:31] everyone is when we do work well together. And council provides that

[16:35] democratic representation, policy direction, political leadership, and

[16:40] makes decisions. The role of staff is really to be that professional

[16:43] administration that can bring forward objective recommendations and then allow

[16:48] council to apply the various lens they would like and provide to carry things

[16:52] out. Staff then manage those municipal programs and resources and provide

[16:57] advice to council to further refine and implement those decisions on a go

[17:01] forward.

[17:05] So, finally school board trustees. So, the role of the school board trustee,

[17:11] they're locally elected representatives who serve on school boards. In Middlesex

[17:16] County there are four school boards, public and separate in both English and

[17:20] French. School board trust School board trustees for our region will be run

[17:26] for the election will be run by the municipality of Strathroy-Caradoc, the

[17:29] city of Woodstock, and the city of London. Check your local municipality's

[17:33] website for where to submit these forms. Trustees are responsible for helping to

[17:38] establish policy direction for the school board, ensuring that decisions

[17:41] reflect the needs and interests of students, families, and the broader

[17:45] community. They actively participate in

[17:47] decision-making, working collaboratively with other trustees to benefit the

[17:51] entire school board. Through their involvement, trustees contribute to by

[17:55] to shaping the educational experience and outcomes for students within their

[18:00] jurisdictions. So, at this point, we will open it up

[18:04] for any questions.

[18:10] Don't everyone jump at once.

[18:15] Back up for a visual instead of going to school board. So, is it something to be

[18:19] on every ballot like East Williams have separate voting? Have a school board?

[18:24] You said it's through Strathroy.

[18:27] Yep. Uh so, I might ask our municipal clerk to answer that one. Um so, I

[18:32] haven't been through the election process myself.

[18:35] The school boards?

[18:55] It's called that.

[19:01] So, the reference to who is going to conduct the election means who's

[19:06] responsible for that, and it's based on a calculation that the is um

[19:11] undertaken around this time of year and whichever municipality within that

[19:19] broader region of the school board has the greatest population of students

[19:23] within that boards

[19:27] schools they're the ones that are responsible

[19:30] for the election but that means that they're the ones that tell every local

[19:35] clerk what are the names of the nominees for each of the elections so

[19:40] if you happen to live in town center for instance and you're

[19:45] interested in running for the French Catholic school board it's not town

[19:50] center where you would supply your nomination papers to it's the

[19:54] municipality it's the city of London I believe in that case but so that is just

[19:59] who's running the election and then all of that information is gathered and

[20:04] announced by them.

[20:25] Any other questions?

[20:29] I think seeing none we just like to say thank you it's always exciting to see

[20:33] civically engaged folks coming out and we appreciate all the opportunity to

[20:37] provide this information we're going to turn it over to the Ministry of

[20:40] Municipal Affairs and Housing right now Jordy Morrison and Spencer Fitzpatrick

[20:44] are here to speak about elections from the ministry perspective.

[21:17] » All right, so good evening everyone. As mentioned, I'm Jodi Morrison and this is

[21:21] Spencer Fitzpatrick. We would like to thank the County of Middlesex and all

[21:25] the lower tier municipalities for inviting us and for hosting this

[21:28] candidate and third-party advertiser information session.

[21:33] So just a disclaimer. These slides are meant to be a summary

[21:36] of some of the sections and should not be relied on for legal or official

[21:40] purposes. I do want to stress that we are not lawyers and that you should

[21:44] always consult the legislation and seek legal advice when necessary.

[21:48] We will not be able to cover every aspect of the municipal election, but

[21:51] hope that this provides you with a better understanding of the process and

[21:55] legislation and improves your comfort level.

[21:58] Congratulations for taking an interest in your community and local government.

[22:01] Whether you're interested in serving on a municipal council or on a school board

[22:05] or registering as a third-party advertiser.

[22:10] Okay, so just an overview of what we're going to go through.

[22:12] We're going to do the eligibility rules, nomination process, campaign finances,

[22:18] compliance audit, voters list, scrutineers, recounts, and resources.

[22:26] So eligibility. Okay, so to be an eligible elector,

[22:31] which means that you must be able to vote so that the list above

[22:36] sorry, so the list above is the list that shows

[22:41] Yeah, so are we looking at the wrong

[22:44] presentation? We

[22:53] There we go. So we're going through all the

[22:55] I think we have the wrong one up. Either way responsibilities. No, we were

[22:59] told to take it out.

[23:03] Sorry.

[23:06] Mhm.

[23:15] Fair enough.

[23:52] There we are. Perfect. Thank you. All right. We'll try

[23:55] that again. Okay. Uh so, eligibility and ineligibility. So, you must be an

[24:01] eligible elector, which means you must be able to vote. So, the list above is a

[24:05] list that shows voter eligibility as well as eligibility to run and hold

[24:09] office. You can only be nominated if, as of the

[24:13] day you are nominated, uh you are qualified to hold that office under the

[24:18] act and are not ineligible under the Municipal Elections Act or any other act

[24:22] or otherwise prohibited by law to be nominated or to hold office.

[24:27] Section 30 of the Municipal Elections Act states that a person shall not be

[24:31] considered an employee for this section by reason only of being a volunteer

[24:35] firefighter as defined in the Fire Protection and Prevention Act.

[24:39] If a municipal employee wishes to run for office on the minute on that

[24:43] municipality's council, they must take a leave of absence before filing their

[24:47] nomination form. Section 30 sub four of the Municipal

[24:51] Elections Act. If elected, he or she shall be deemed to who resigned from the

[24:56] employment immediately before making the declaration of office.

[25:00] An employee of a municipality who wants to run for an office in a different

[25:04] municipality does not have to take a leave of absence or resign, but they

[25:08] should check with their employer to see if there are any policies that could

[25:11] affect them. School board trustee eligibility and

[25:16] ineligibility. This slide shows the eligibility

[25:19] requirements for a school board trustee as well as ineligibility. Questions

[25:23] about school board uh eligibility should be directed to the school board

[25:26] secretary. Just some things to note, if you are an

[25:30] employee of any school board and you wish to run for a trustee position on

[25:34] any board in the province, you must take an unpaid leave of absence before you

[25:39] file your nomination form. If elected, you must resign from your job. You

[25:43] cannot work for a school board and be a trustee in Ontario at the same time. The

[25:48] following people are disqualified from being elected as a school board trustee.

[25:52] A clerk, deputy clerk, treasurer, or deputy treasurer of a municipality

[25:57] within the jurisdiction of the board.

[26:01] Nomination process. So, the first day to file nominations is this Friday, May

[26:04] 1st, 2026. Nomination day, the last day and time for filing nominations for the

[26:09] 2026 election, is on Friday, August 21st, 2026 by 2:00 p.m.

[26:15] Withdrawal of a nomination must be filed with the clerk's office in writing

[26:19] before 2:00 p.m. on nomination day. If a candidate withdraws a nomination,

[26:23] they're still required to file a campaign financial statement covering

[26:27] all of the financial transactions made in the campaign. If you have not spent

[26:32] any money, nor raised any funds, they can click on the box indicating so, sign

[26:36] the form, and it is complete. If a nomination is withdrawn, the

[26:40] candidate is entitled to a refund of their nomination filing fee only after

[26:45] they file their financial statement by the required deadline.

[26:48] The clerk must certify nominations by 4:00 p.m. on the Monday following

[26:52] nomination day, which is August 24th, 2026.

[26:58] Continuing with nomination process. So, candidates must complete form one,

[27:01] nomination paper, and submit it to the clerk along with the applicable

[27:05] nomination filing fee. The filing fee is $200 for anyone running for the head of

[27:10] head of council and $100 for all other other offices.

[27:14] The clerk must be satisfied that you were eligible to run in order to certify

[27:18] your nomination. The clerk can ask you to show

[27:21] identification or fill out an additional form to prove that you are eligible to

[27:25] run for that particular office. The nomination form must have an

[27:29] original signature. If your nomination is not certified by

[27:33] the clerk, your name will not appear on the ballot.

[27:35] If you're in a ward system, as long as you are eligible to vote in the

[27:39] municipality, you may run in any ward. If you do run in a ward where you do not

[27:44] live, you will not be able to vote for yourself as you must vote in the ward in

[27:47] which you reside. In addition to the legislative

[27:50] requirements, each municipal clerk may establish their own local processes and

[27:55] procedures related to submitting a nomination. So, it is important to

[27:59] contact the clerk so you understand the process in that municipality.

[28:03] Use of electronic filing for candidates and or third-party advertisers is in the

[28:07] clerk's discretion. The clerk also has authority to

[28:10] determine what methods could be used to file electronically.

[28:14] Even if a clerk permits electronic filing, all campaign documents require

[28:18] original signatures, including the signatures endorsing a candidate's

[28:21] nominations, where applicable. If electronic filing is permitted, it is

[28:26] the responsibility of the candidate or third-party advertiser to to maintain

[28:30] these original records until after the next regular election.

[28:36] Running for different office. Occasionally, a candidate changes their

[28:39] mind and decides to run for a different office. You can only run for one office

[28:42] at a time. If a candidate files a second

[28:45] nomination, the first nomination is deemed to be withdrawn.

[28:48] If a candidate decides to run for another office and they have already

[28:51] collected the 25 endorsement signatures, they can use these endorsements for the

[28:55] other office. If a candidate decides to run for an

[28:59] different office on the same council or school board and both positions are

[29:03] elected at large, everything from the first campaign is transferred to the

[29:07] second campaign and only one financial statement needs to be filed.

[29:11] Unless the candidate decides to run for a different office on the same council

[29:15] or school board and one or both offices are elected by ward, the two campaigns

[29:21] must be kept separate and two financial statements must be filed.

[29:26] Third-party advertiser. A third-party advertiser is an

[29:29] individual, corporation, or trade union that is a register that is registered in

[29:34] the municipality to promote, support, or oppose a candidate or a yes or no answer

[29:39] to a question on the ballot. A third-party advertisement means an

[29:43] advertisement in any broadcast, print, electronic, or other medium that has a

[29:47] purpose of promoting, supporting, or opposing a candidate or a yes or no

[29:52] answer to a question on the ballot.

[29:56] So, the 25 signatures. Municipal council candidates are required to obtain 25

[30:01] nomination signatures on form two. Ontario Regulation 101/97 provides an

[30:07] exemption to this requirement for candidates in municipalities with less

[30:10] than 4,000 electors. Nominators can nominate more than one

[30:14] candidate and are not required to vote for that candidate. Nominators must meet

[30:18] the eligibility requirements of a municipal elector at the time they sign

[30:22] the nomination form. In a ward system, the nominator can be

[30:26] anyone who is eligible to vote in the municipality, not just the ward.

[30:30] Both the clerk and the candidate are entitled to rely upon the information

[30:33] provided by the nominator. If the nominator did not meet the

[30:36] eligibility requirements when they sign the document, then they could be held

[30:39] accountable under the penalty section of the Municipal Elections Act.

[30:44] And with that, I will turn it over to Spencer for campaign finances. Okay,

[30:48] thank you, Jody. So, campaign finances, everybody's favorite part about running

[30:52] a campaign. This is going to be, I think, probably

[30:55] the densest part of the presentation. There are quite a few rules you want to

[30:58] be aware of. We hope this section is going to give you a nice overview of

[31:01] those rules. Now, that isn't to discourage anybody

[31:04] from running. I would say I don't think the rules are too onerous, but you are

[31:07] going to notice a common theme kind of throughout this section of the

[31:09] presentation. It's around record keeping. Keeping good, accurate records

[31:13] is really going to help you comply with these finance rules. And

[31:17] especially when it comes to filing your financial statement, which again we'll

[31:20] talk about throughout the sections, just going to make it a lot easier.

[31:25] And then just so you do know, a copy of this presentation is going to

[31:28] be available for everybody's information. If you want to refer to it

[31:32] later. And then as well, I'll do a quick plug now and you'll hear me reference it

[31:36] throughout this section of the presentation.

[31:39] There is the candidate's guide as well, which is available on our website. The

[31:42] candidate's guide is a super helpful, valuable resource if you're going to be

[31:47] running. I would highly recommend that you do take a look at it. Go through it,

[31:51] you know, front to back. It's not that long, but ton of great information. Lots

[31:56] of examples, too, for some specific situations you might run into. And then

[32:00] as well, the bonus at the end is all these forms that we're referring to

[32:03] throughout the presentation are linked at the end of that guide. So, you can

[32:07] take a look at them, get familiar with them as well.

[32:10] But without further ado, campaign finances.

[32:14] So, the first thing we'll talk about is contributions. Now, just a first thing

[32:18] to know is that if you are going to raise or spend any money during the

[32:21] campaign, you do have to open up a campaign bank account. But that campaign

[32:25] bank account is only required if you do spend or raise money.

[32:30] So, if you do run a campaign where you don't spend or raise any money, you

[32:34] don't need to get a campaign bank account. However, you still do need to

[32:37] file a financial statement. Now, just generally, you're going to

[32:42] hear references to third-party advertisers both in the earlier part of

[32:45] the presentation and in this section of the presentation. Generally, the rules

[32:49] are going to be the same for third-party advertisers as they are for candidates.

[32:54] There's a few differences mostly around spending limits, which we can touch on

[32:59] in the presentation. Now, another thing you want to be aware

[33:02] of is that municipalities must establish rules and procedures regarding the use

[33:07] of municipal or local board resources during the campaign period. Now, this

[33:12] does have to be passed by May 1st in the year of the election. So, of course,

[33:15] that also is coming up if it hasn't already been passed. And this does

[33:18] encourage accountability and transparency and it could be different

[33:23] in each municipality. So, you really want to be aware of your municipality's

[33:27] policy in this regard. Now, just a quick note as well,

[33:31] generally or you will see municipalities providing candidate contact information

[33:36] on their websites. This is not considered a contribution. So, you don't

[33:40] have to worry about recording that on your campaign finance statement.

[33:45] So, continuing on with contributions. You see here on this slide, this talks

[33:48] about who you can accept contributions from both as a candidate and as a

[33:53] third-party advertiser. Just really quick, is there anybody here interested

[33:56] in registering as a third-party advertiser?

[33:59] All candidates? Okay. So, for candidates, the thing you really

[34:03] want to be aware of is that you really can only accept contributions from

[34:07] either yourself, you know, you can self-donate to your campaign or your

[34:10] spouse or individuals. You can't receive

[34:13] contributions from, you know, corporations or trade unions. They can

[34:17] participate as third-party advertisers or donate to those third-party

[34:20] advertiser campaigns. But when it comes to candidates, you're just going to be

[34:24] accepting contributions from individuals.

[34:28] Now, if you are a third-party advertiser and you were accepting contributions

[34:31] from a corporation. Uh some rules clarifying

[34:35] uh you know what would be deemed to be a single corporation. Clarified on that

[34:38] slide, do take a look if you are interested in that. Uh however, since we

[34:41] don't seem to have any third-party advertisers in the room, uh we'll just

[34:44] go right on to the next slide, uh which again is going to keep talking about

[34:48] contributions. Uh so generally, you might have

[34:51] volunteers uh helping you with your campaign. Uh those services provided by

[34:55] volunteers aren't considered uh contributions.

[34:58] But, uh if for professionals, so you know your accountants, lawyers,

[35:03] uh if they do volunteer to provide services for which they would normally

[35:06] be paid, the market value of those services must be recorded as a

[35:10] contribution uh by the volunteer and then then considered a campaign expense.

[35:16] Uh as we noted on the previous slide, uh trade unions and corporations not

[35:21] eligible to contribute to, you know, an individual candidate's campaign. Uh

[35:25] although they can participate in the election as either a third-party

[35:28] advertiser uh or make contribution to those third-party campaigns.

[35:34] So, contributions though, you know, we've had a few slides now talking about

[35:37] them, but you know, really what are they? So, campaign contributions are

[35:40] going to be any monies, goods, or services uh given to you as a candidate

[35:44] or to your election campaign uh or given and accepted by another person who is

[35:49] acting under your direction. Now, when it comes to cash

[35:53] contributions, cash contributions can only be accepted up to $25.

[35:58] Uh so again, cash contributions only up to $25. Anything more than $25 must be

[36:04] made by check, money order, uh or by any other method that's going to clearly

[36:09] show where those funds came from. Now, when it comes to fundraising

[36:14] functions, those are going to be events uh or activities, you know, held by you

[36:19] as the candidate or on your behalf uh for the primary purpose of raising money

[36:23] uh for your campaign. Now, the price of admission to a fundraising function is a

[36:28] campaign contribution and a receipt must be issued for the full amount. Now,

[36:34] that's the first reference to receipts in this part of the presentation. Again,

[36:38] I was talking about record keeping. Going to be really key. You're got to

[36:41] issue receipts for all your contributions and we'll talk about it a

[36:44] bit more, but they're going to be valuable documents. You really want to

[36:47] make sure you keep track of them. Now, with the receipts, they do have to

[36:50] be issued for every contribution and they should contain both the name of the

[36:54] contributor, their address, the amount they've contributed as well as the date

[36:59] they've made that contribution.

[37:02] So, how much can somebody contribute to your campaign though?

[37:05] So, the limit on contributions to any one candidate or a third party

[37:09] advertiser because again, the rules are generally the same is $1,200. So, that's

[37:14] $1,200. There's a different limit in Toronto.

[37:19] Toronto's got special rules all the time, but for everywhere else, it's

[37:23] $1,200. Now, there is an aggregate limit total

[37:26] that any person can donate to any number of candidates

[37:29] for office on the same council and that's $5,000.

[37:34] So, you are going to want to be aware of those limits because you do have to let

[37:37] all your contributors know what those limits are and that is a requirement

[37:41] under the Municipal Election Act. So, it might be a good idea to provide

[37:46] that information on your receipts. Just a thought. However, you can do it

[37:50] as you wish, but you do have to inform them.

[37:55] Now, self-funding limits. So, of course, as we mentioned on an earlier slide, you

[37:58] can contribute to your own campaign. Either you or your spouse and it's

[38:03] considered to have come from the same person.

[38:06] Now, the self-funding limit for council candidates is based on the number of

[38:11] electors voting for the office up to a maximum of $25,000.

[38:17] This amount doesn't include any contributions of goods and could include

[38:21] inventory from a leftover or that you have leftover from a previous campaign.

[38:25] So, for example, if you did run in 2022, maybe you still have some signs left

[38:29] over that you want to use again. You certainly can. We'll talk about it

[38:32] in a future slide, but if you do have that and you are going to use them, it

[38:36] is going to count as a contribution to your campaign

[38:38] and would count towards your self-contribution or self-funding limit.

[38:43] Now, the formula for calculating the limit is $7,500 plus $0.20

[38:49] for the head of council and then $5,000 plus $0.20 per elector for all other

[38:55] council offices. Now, here's an important note. The maximum amount you

[38:59] could possibly have is $25,000. So, if that formula, whether you're

[39:03] running for head of council or any other of the council offices, if that formula

[39:07] works out to an amount that is higher than $25,000,

[39:11] doesn't matter. You're capped at that $25,000 limit. However, if the formula

[39:16] does work out to an amount that is less than $25,000

[39:21] or, you know, any amount lower than that, you get whatever that formula

[39:24] works out to.

[39:28] So, borrowing. So, while you do open your campaign bank

[39:32] account, you can, of course, use your own funds to do that, but you can't loan

[39:38] funds to your campaign to, like, you know, kickstart it with the intention of

[39:42] getting it all back. The only way that you can reclaim this,

[39:46] you know, startup amount is if after the election campaign and prior to filing

[39:51] your financial statement, you see that your campaign has a surplus, you are

[39:55] entitled to be refunded contributions that you or your spouse have made to the

[39:59] campaign from that campaign surplus. You can't receive a loan from any family

[40:04] members or from any corporate accounts that you

[40:06] may have access to. Now, if you do get a loan,

[40:10] it isn't considered to be campaign income and paying it back is not

[40:13] considered to be a campaign expense. But, if you or your spouse guarantee the

[40:18] loan and your campaign then doesn't repay all of it, the remaining balance

[40:22] is considered to be a contribution uh since as a guarantor you're basically

[40:27] providing that the campaign has the means to repay it. Uh keep in mind if

[40:31] this does happen to you that self-contribution limit uh that uh we

[40:36] talked on the earlier slide if you do end up borrowing. And then just a final

[40:40] note on borrowing and loans is any interest that your campaign pays on the

[40:44] loan uh is considered a campaign expense.

[40:49] So, campaign expenses. Mentioned those a few times. Uh you can

[40:54] see here just a general definition for what is considered to be a campaign

[40:58] expense under the municipal municipal elections act.

[41:02] Now, the Municipal Elections Act section 88.19 subsection 3 uh does list out 10

[41:08] different uh items that would be considered a campaign expense or, you

[41:13] know, specifically under the act it says what constitutes campaign expense. I'll

[41:17] just quickly go through those items. We'll talk about them a bit more on the

[41:20] next slide. Uh it's legislation. Legislation by its very nature is very

[41:24] dry. Uh but uh with that, those are one, the replacement value of goods retained

[41:29] by the person, individual, corporation, or trade union from any previous

[41:33] election in the municipality and used in the current election. Two, the value of

[41:37] contributions of goods and services. Three, audit and accounting fees. Four,

[41:43] any interest on loans under section 88.17.

[41:47] Uh five, the cost of holding fundraising functions. Six, the cost of holding

[41:52] parties and other and making other expressions

[41:55] uh of appreciation after the close of voting.

[41:59] Uh seven, for a candidate expenses related

[42:02] to a recount or a proceeding under section 83. Section 83 is the

[42:06] controverted election section. Uh number eight, expenses related to a to a audit.

[42:11] Number nine, expenses that are incurred by a candidate with a disability or a

[42:15] registered third party who is an individual with a disability disability

[42:18] are directly related to the disability and would not have been incurred but for

[42:22] the election to which the expenses relate. And then finally, item number

[42:26] 10, the cost of campaign election advertisements. Now, for

[42:32] candidates, election advertisements are covered in section 88.3. We'll talk

[42:37] about those as well on a future slide, but you may want to make note of that

[42:41] section as well. Third party advertisers, just for reference, they do

[42:44] have a different section where their campaign advertisements

[42:47] or explain are explained.

[42:51] So, continuing on with those campaign expenses, you really do want to become

[42:56] familiar with those campaign expense provisions. Very critical. And again,

[43:01] that's going to be laid out in section 88.19 of the Municipal Elections Act.

[43:06] Now, generally, campaign expenses are going to be those costs that are

[43:09] incurred by you or on your behalf during your campaign. Uh

[43:14] And you know, yeah, are incurred by you. Pardon me. The nomination filing fee is

[43:19] no longer considered an expense and does not have to be included on your

[43:23] financial disclosure form. So again, there's another reference right to that

[43:26] record keeping requirement. Now, goods and services donated to the campaign are

[43:30] also expenses and they do have to be reported.

[43:33] A receipt, so again, receipt does need to be provided for those goods and

[43:38] services for their fair market value. Now, payment of any campaign expenses

[43:43] does have to be drawn from your campaign account and a receipt, again, a receipt

[43:48] providing the details and proof of payment must be obtained.

[43:52] A question we do get is, "Hey, can I just pay a campaign expense from my

[43:55] personal credit card and reimburse myself?" Definitely don't do that. That

[43:59] would be against the campaign finance rules. You need to be making these

[44:02] payments from your campaign bank account.

[44:05] Now, all expenses must be reported in the relevant financial disclosure form.

[44:08] That's going to be called form four, and again, linked at the end of the

[44:11] candidate's guide. So, another reason you're going to want to take a look at

[44:14] the candidate's guide. And it does need to be filed by the

[44:17] clerk. However, we'll get into those filing uh deadlines in a next future

[44:22] slide. Now, with respect to campaign inventory, we kind of briefly touched on

[44:26] this earlier in the presentation. If you did run in the last election, you have

[44:30] some leftover goods, so that could be, you know, maybe signs, maybe some office

[44:33] supplies, uh and you want to use those again, you first have to determine what

[44:38] the current market value for those goods is, and what it was what it would cost

[44:42] if you were to purchase them today. Those are then recorded as a

[44:46] contribution and then a campaign expense.

[44:49] Conversely, if you end up with leftover inventory

[44:53] uh at the end of this campaign, it then does become your personal property, uh

[44:57] and if you do want to use them maybe in a future election, of course, you're

[45:00] welcome to do that. Uh however, any cost for storage are not considered campaign

[45:05] expenses. So, spending limits. Now, this is a

[45:09] separate calculation from your self-funding or self-contribution limit.

[45:14] These are also laid out in Ontario Regulation 101/97.

[45:18] So, that's a busy regulation. There's a lot of stuff in there.

[45:20] Uh and it is set out for a general spending limit. There's two. A general

[45:25] spending limit calculation there is on the slide. For heads of council, it's

[45:28] $7,500 plus 85 cents per elector. Uh and for all other offices, it's

[45:33] $5,000 plus 85 cents per elector. That separate spending limit is a spending

[45:39] limit after voting day for parties, expressions of appreciation, gifts, uh

[45:43] that sort of thing, and that's going to be 10% of the general spending limit.

[45:49] But, where do you get these spending limits? How are you going to find them

[45:51] out? So, when you file your nomination, the clerk is going to provide you two or

[45:55] throughout the campaign, there'll be two uh calculations of your spending limits

[46:00] that'll be provided to you. The first one, you're going to get at the time of

[46:03] nomination and it's a preliminary estimate

[46:06] which is based on the number of electors on the voters list as it existed in

[46:10] September 2022. Now, the final spending limit, that's

[46:15] going to be based on the voters list as it exists in September on September

[46:18] 20th, 2026 and it will be provided to you

[46:23] on or about September 30th, 2026. Now, whichever number is higher is the

[46:29] spending limit and whatever that number is, the clerk's calculation is final.

[46:35] Now, as I mentioned on an earlier slide, you are required to inform contributors

[46:39] of their contribution limits. So, that's both how much they can contribute to

[46:43] your individual campaign and that aggregate total limit that they

[46:47] can donate to, you know, other candidates in that same election.

[46:52] Similarly, if a third party advertiser has registered in one more than one

[46:56] municipality, pardon me, each registration is a separate campaign

[47:00] and does require them to file a separate financial statement in each of those

[47:03] municipalities. The

[47:06] rules are going to be the same for candidates and third party advertisers.

[47:10] Also includes, as I mentioned, those filing limits,

[47:13] filing deadlines, and any requests for extensions and record keeping

[47:17] requirements.

[47:20] So, there are some expenses that are not going to be subject to the spending

[47:23] limits. Most are going to be subject to your spending limit, but the ones on the

[47:27] slide there won't. Now,

[47:31] quick note for expenses related to fundraising functions.

[47:35] Expenses related to fundraising functions are exempt from the campaign

[47:39] spending limit, but in order to qualify as a fundraising function, an event must

[47:43] have the raising of money as its primary purpose.

[47:47] Campaign events that were, you know, just some incidental fundraising is

[47:51] taking place, that does not qualify as a fundraising function. And then

[47:55] similarly, if you have maybe a brochure that you're distributing to promote

[47:59] awareness of your campaign, and it contains, you know, contact information

[48:04] where people can make those campaign contributions, that also does not

[48:07] qualify as a fundraising function.

[48:13] So, all of this stuff is kind of laid out generally in the campaign finance

[48:17] rules. Uh campaign finance rules can be found in the sections noted there on the

[48:21] slides. And again, you'll have these slides to review uh later if you want to

[48:24] refer to them. But, for candidates, that's going to be sections 88.8 to

[48:28] 88.11, and then again 88.15 to 88.20. Uh over the next several slides, we're

[48:35] going to walk you through some of these campaign finance rules.

[48:39] As I mentioned, as a candidate, it's going to be really critical, very

[48:42] important for you to be fully aware of your responsibilities regarding election

[48:46] spending and accepting those campaign contributions. Uh now, a question we do

[48:51] get every single election is whether there is a requirement for you to have,

[48:55] you know, a chief financial officer uh to help you manage your campaign

[48:59] finances. The answer is no. You can certainly do this uh on your own. Uh

[49:04] however, like I said, it's just important to be familiar with the rules,

[49:07] be aware of what your requirements are. This is again another plug for the

[49:10] candidates' guide. This is where that comes in handy because it does give you

[49:13] a nice overview of those rules, give you access to the forms, and also includes

[49:17] some common examples that you might run into to help you work through these

[49:20] rules. So, again, become familiar with these

[49:24] sections on the slide, going to be very important. Uh and as well, take a look

[49:28] at that financial statement that's linked at the end of the candidates'

[49:31] guide. Again, that's going to be form four uh for candidates.

[49:34] If third-party advertisers, just for your information, it's form eight, also

[49:38] linked at the end of the guide there. If you take a look at that form now, it's

[49:41] going to help keep you organized uh and then get you familiar with what kind of

[49:45] records you're going to be uh keeping and how they're going to be reported on

[49:49] that form. You are required under the Municipal

[49:53] Elections Act to keep accurate records and then of course also open a campaign

[49:57] bank accounts. That's going to be something else I want to start thinking

[49:59] about now. But again, the campaign bank accounts

[50:02] only required if you're spending or raising money. If you don't spend any

[50:05] money, you don't raise any money, you don't have to open up a campaign bank

[50:09] account, but you do have to file that financial form. So keep that in mind.

[50:15] So record keeping, of course we've kind of been referencing record keeping

[50:18] throughout this part of the presentation. These next few slides

[50:22] going to talk about it a bit more. You are required to keep accurate, complete

[50:26] financial statements during the course of your campaign.

[50:30] All contributions and all expenses do need to be accounted for and they do

[50:34] need to be disclosed and reported by you on that relevant financial form. So

[50:39] again, that is form four. Uh

[50:43] all candidates and third-party advertisers

[50:46] are required to keep your campaign financial records until after the

[50:49] council in the 2030 election it has been sworn in and takes office. So that's

[50:55] going to be around November 15th, 2030, give or take.

[51:00] These rules apply around record keeping, financial statements, all that kind of

[51:03] good stuff do apply whether you're elected or not.

[51:07] Just like you have to keep your campaign finance records until 2030, the clerk

[51:12] also must keep all their campaign finance records until after the 2030

[51:16] council has been sworn in.

[51:20] So record keeping, maybe just some best practices that you might want to keep

[51:24] aware of as you go through your campaign. As I've kind of mentioned a

[51:27] few times, receipts they're valuable. Keep them safe, keep

[51:32] them secure. You're going to need them. It may be a good practice to have a

[51:36] receipt that is, you know, a multi-part form, one that you can easily give to

[51:40] your contributor and one or maybe more for you to keep for your records. Might

[51:45] also help if those receipts are sequentially numbered. Again, it's maybe

[51:48] just going to help you stay organized. Uh again, you're going to want to or if

[51:52] you are going to be opening up a bank account, may want to look at one that

[51:55] provides monthly statements and provides for canceled checks.

[51:59] Uh it may also be a good idea to produce duplicate deposit slips for every

[52:03] deposit that'll list the names of the contributors uh and the amounts you've

[52:07] received from each of them. You may also want to uh maintain a petty

[52:12] cash fund to handle those minor expenses you run into throughout the course of

[52:15] the campaign and then also obtain invoices uh for any payments you're

[52:19] making from that petty cash fund. At any time, the cash that you have on hand in

[52:24] that petty cash fund plus the total amount of invoices should equal the

[52:29] original amount you started with. Uh the the fund can be replenished

[52:34] periodically, uh but it has to be done by, you know, a check drawn from your

[52:39] campaign bank account and it should be in an amount equal to the total amount

[52:43] of invoices that you've issued for your petty cash fund.

[52:47] Now, as I mentioned, you might find it useful to look over that form 4 now uh

[52:51] so you become, you know, familiar with what information's going to be needed to

[52:54] report on at the end of your campaign in October.

[52:58] Uh and again, just to really make it clear,

[53:01] you are required to maintain uh certain campaign records both as it relates to

[53:06] your finances and your advertisements. Uh specifically for the advertisement,

[53:11] that's again laid out in section 88.3 uh of the Municipal Elections Act. We'll

[53:17] talk about it a bit more in the next uh future slide. Uh however, you do need to

[53:20] keep them for a period of 4 years. And that slide is now as it comes to

[53:26] campaign advertisements. Uh now, just so you're aware, the period

[53:29] for third-party advertisers uh to run advertisements is from May

[53:34] 1st, 2026, so the first day of nominations if they do register, uh

[53:39] until the close of voting on October 26th, 2026.

[53:42] Uh now, when it comes to advertisements and this applies to both third-party

[53:46] advertisers and candidates, you are required to identify yourselves on signs

[53:51] and campaign advertisements. And then again, that is in section 88.3 for

[53:57] candidates. Third-party advertisers, just so you

[53:59] know, it's section 88.4.

[54:03] Now this slide talks about the record keeping requirements for campaign

[54:07] advertisements. So the broadcaster or publisher of a third-party or candidate

[54:12] advertisement shall, so shall is a really key word there. Shall means must.

[54:17] So shall maintain records containing the following information for a period of 4

[54:22] years after the date the advertisement appears

[54:26] and shall, so again, another shall, must permit the public to inspect the records

[54:31] during normal business hours. So that information's going to be the

[54:35] name of the candidate or the third-party advertiser, the name, business address

[54:40] and telephone number of the individual who deals with the broadcaster or the

[54:44] publisher under the direction of either the candidate or the third-party

[54:47] advertiser. Also need to maintain a copy of that advertisement

[54:52] or the means of reproducing it for inspection and then finally a statement

[54:56] of the charge that was made for its appearance.

[55:00] And now the best part, everybody loves this part of the presentation, the

[55:03] financial statement. Talked about it up quite a lot already through the

[55:07] presentation. The requirement to file a financial statement, this is a really

[55:10] key piece. Not doing this could result in some penalties that we'll talk about

[55:14] in a future slide. However, this is laid out in section

[55:17] 88.25 of the Municipal Elections Act, which does state that all candidates are

[55:22] required to file a form four financial statement with the clerk regardless of

[55:27] how much or how little you spent or fundraised.

[55:31] The deadline to file your financial statement, so this is a key date you're

[55:34] going to want to remember, is March 30th, 2027 by 2:00 p.m.

[55:39] Not close of business, not, you know, the next business day. It's March 30th,

[55:45] 2027 before 2:00 p.m. If you do feel you can't meet that

[55:50] deadline, you do have to apply to the courts for an extension and you're going

[55:53] to need to do that prior to the March 30th deadline.

[55:57] Now, as I've kind of mentioned a few times, just want to stress it, if you

[56:01] file a nomination, you must file a Form 4. Even if you withdraw your nomination

[56:06] or you're acclaimed into your office, doesn't matter, you still need to file a

[56:10] Form 4. You don't raise, don't spend any money, that's fine. You still need to

[56:14] file a Form 4. Uh you can now or can however though

[56:19] resubmit a financial statement. If you do notice you made some errors, you can

[56:23] always resubmit a financial statement up to that filing deadline.

[56:27] And then the clerk is required to make public a report of which candidates did

[56:31] file and which candidates didn't file. Uh so people will be aware if you didn't

[56:36] meet those obligations.

[56:41] Now, with the financial statement, just some more information there. You can

[56:44] file your financial statement at any time after the close of voting or at any

[56:49] time during the campaign period, although it would close your campaign.

[56:52] Just so you know that date there on the slide, December 31st, 2026, that's the

[56:57] official end of the campaign period. Uh so you can't campaign any time past

[57:01] that. However, you do have up until March 30th, 2027 to file

[57:07] your financial statement. So it's maybe, you know, it's a good practice though if

[57:11] you didn't you know, have very many expenses,

[57:14] didn't raise very much money, uh or, you know, you were acclaimed into

[57:17] your office, maybe good idea to get it in as soon as you can. Just helps,

[57:22] uh you know, move things along when you have those types of campaigns where it's

[57:25] just little or no expenses have been incurred.

[57:28] Now, clerks are required to report whether candidates have met their

[57:31] financial filing obligations and they will publish that report either

[57:35] on the municipal website or in another electronic form that the

[57:39] public can access. This will be done by April 30th 2027

[57:44] in the case of a regular election. There is a similar requirement for

[57:49] third-party advertisers. The clerk will also make public a report as soon as

[57:53] possible after April 30th 2027 providing a list of all third-party

[57:58] advertisers that have or haven't filed their required

[58:02] financial statements and in the case of third-party advertisers also an

[58:05] auditor's report. Now similar to the nomination forms, clerks can determine

[58:10] the conditions for electronic filing of financial statements. So you will want

[58:15] to check with your local municipal clerk to see if that is an option for you.

[58:18] Otherwise, you'll have to attend the office

[58:20] to file that form.

[58:25] Another slide about financial statements cuz

[58:27] that's how critical they are. Now if you do have expenses or

[58:31] contributions that exceed $10,000, you do need to appoint an auditor to

[58:36] fill out an auditor's report as well that you'll submit with your financial

[58:39] statement. Now that auditor does have to be licensed under the public accounting

[58:43] act. So just cuz you have maybe a friend or a family member that's you know like

[58:47] really good with numbers. It's great but they can't do your auditor's report if

[58:51] you find yourself in this situation. It does have to be a licensed professional

[58:55] under that public accounting act. And you also want to be aware those public

[59:00] pardon me those campaign financial statements are public documents. So they

[59:04] are subject to public inspection if somebody did request them.

[59:14] Now when it comes to your financial statements, the nomination filing fee

[59:18] it's refundable but only if you file your financial statement on time.

[59:24] If you do miss that filing deadline, which again March 30th, 2027, you do

[59:30] have a 30-day grace period. However, you have to pay a $500 late filing fee,

[59:35] which is going to go to the municipality,

[59:37] and you wouldn't be you know, you wouldn't be getting your

[59:40] nomination fee back. Now, just a quick note for everybody cuz

[59:44] I know you're all going to look at the Municipal Elections Act after this.

[59:47] You're going to be going through there and you're going to notice the Municipal

[59:49] Elections Act says that you need to file your financial statement in the last

[59:53] Friday on the last Friday in March following the regular election. And you

[59:57] say, "Well, it's you said Tuesday, March 30th." So, the last Friday in March in

[1:00:01] 2027 is actually going to be Good Friday, so that's a holiday. And of

[1:00:04] course, Monday, that's Easter Monday, so also offices are closed, which is why it

[1:00:09] goes to Tuesday, March 30th, 2027 before 2:00 p.m.

[1:00:14] Now, as I mentioned, if you do choose to file within that 30-day grace period,

[1:00:18] you're going to pay $500 as a late filing fee, which is going to go to the

[1:00:21] municipality, and you're not going to get your nomination fee back. However,

[1:00:24] if you did apply to the courts for an extension and were granted an extension,

[1:00:28] as long as you meet the conditions of that extension, you

[1:00:32] file your financial statement, you could get your your nomination fee back.

[1:00:37] And then again, I know I mentioned on an earlier slide, but just remember, you

[1:00:40] can correct an error on your financial statement if you do notice one. You have

[1:00:43] up until the filing deadline, March 30th, 2027 to do that.

[1:00:50] So, campaign surplus, which we kind of referenced earlier when it comes to the

[1:00:54] self-contribution limit, and you know, if you find yourself in a surplus

[1:00:58] situation. So, when you're filing that financial

[1:01:00] statement, you add up all your totals, you notice you have a surplus. You must

[1:01:04] pay that entire amount to the clerk. With one caveat.

[1:01:09] Prior to paying over that amount, those surplus funds to the clerk, you are

[1:01:13] entitled to a refund of any contributions that you yourself or your

[1:01:17] spouse made to the campaign, not anybody else's contributions, just those

[1:01:22] self-contributions. The amount that may be refunded is the

[1:01:25] lesser of the amount of the relevant contribution or the amount of the

[1:01:29] surplus. Now, the clerk is required then, if you

[1:01:32] do have surplus monies, they will place those monies in trust

[1:01:35] for you to use if you do need them for a compliance audit. And the same is true

[1:01:39] for third-party advertisers. If neither you

[1:01:44] or you know, a third-party advertiser do need those surplus funds for a

[1:01:49] compliance audit, the municipality is going to keep them

[1:01:52] or the school board if you did run for a trustee.

[1:02:00] So, next section we go into compliance and enforcement. However, this is really

[1:02:05] kind of just an extension of the campaign finance section cuz what we're

[1:02:09] going to talk about are compliance audits.

[1:02:12] So, each municipality is going to establish a compliance audit committee.

[1:02:17] If an eligible elector does believe on reasonable grounds that, you know, you

[1:02:22] as a candidate have contravened the election finance rules,

[1:02:26] they may apply for a compliance audit of your campaign finances.

[1:02:31] The application must be in writing and must set out the reasons why they

[1:02:34] believe you contravened the rules. An application for a compliance audit

[1:02:40] must be submitted to the municipal clerk who conducted the election and it does

[1:02:43] have to happen within 90 days after the later of the deadline to file

[1:02:47] the campaign financial statement which could include any applicable extension

[1:02:52] which will be covered in just a note. And in this situation, that's section

[1:02:57] 88.23 subsection 3 of the Municipal Elections

[1:03:01] Act. Now, if the compliance audit committee

[1:03:04] does get an application, they will consider that application and decide

[1:03:08] whether to grant or reject the application and you may appeal that

[1:03:12] decision to the Superior Court of Justice. You have to do that within 15

[1:03:16] days after the decision is made. Now a person who does not want to or is

[1:03:22] not able to apply to to the compliance audit committee may decide to commence

[1:03:27] legal action just on their own and they would be able to do that up to

[1:03:31] November 15th, 2030. That's again when the next

[1:03:35] election takes place when the next council will be sworn in.

[1:03:40] What happens if a compliance audit is granted?

[1:03:43] So if the committee does grant the application, it will appoint an auditor

[1:03:47] to to conduct a compliance audit of your campaign finances. The auditor is

[1:03:52] entitled to have access to all of your financial records related to the

[1:03:55] campaign. The auditor will then produce a report

[1:03:58] which you are going to be entitled to receive.

[1:04:01] The compliance audit committee committee will meet to discuss this auditor's

[1:04:05] report. If the report concludes that there is an apparent convention of the

[1:04:09] municipal elections act, the committee will decide whether to commence legal

[1:04:13] action. Now you know important note here is that

[1:04:17] the compliance audit committee doesn't have any authority to set penalties.

[1:04:21] Only the court can decide if you contravene the act and if so which

[1:04:25] penalties are going to apply. There are however some automatic

[1:04:30] penalties you may want to be aware of. There are three of them in the municipal

[1:04:35] elections act where penalties apply automatically.

[1:04:39] So if you do fail to file that financial statement

[1:04:42] before or pardon me by the end of that 30-day grace period or fail to apply to

[1:04:47] the courts for an extension before March 30th, 2027,

[1:04:51] you could be subject to an automatic penalty. If your financial statement

[1:04:55] shows that you exceeded your spending limit, you could be subject to an

[1:04:59] automatic penalty. And finally, if you do fail to turn over your surplus to the

[1:05:03] clerk when you file that financial statement, you could be subject to an

[1:05:07] automatic penalty. The penalty could be that you forfeit

[1:05:10] your office if you did win the election and then you would become ineligible to

[1:05:14] be to run or be appointed to fill a vacancy until after the 2030 election.

[1:05:23] There are some other penalties other penalties you may want to be aware of.

[1:05:27] If you are convicted under of an offense under the Municipal Elections Act, you

[1:05:31] could be subject to a fine of up to $25,000,

[1:05:34] ineligibility to vote or run in the next general election,

[1:05:38] up to 6 months in prison and forfeiture of your elected office if the judge

[1:05:42] finds that you committed the offense knowingly.

[1:05:45] I did previously indicate that if you are convicted of exceeding the spending

[1:05:49] limit you will automatically lose your seat if you did win

[1:05:53] that election. In addition,

[1:05:56] you may also be fined by the amount by which you exceeded that spending limit.

[1:06:04] So, into the voters list which I think I'm going to hand back to Jody here

[1:06:08] to take us through this section.

[1:06:12] All right. So, Elections Ontario is a non-partisan office of the Legislative

[1:06:17] Assembly of Ontario responsible for ministering provincial elections led by

[1:06:22] the Chief Electoral Officer. Elections Ontario is governed by the Election Act

[1:06:26] and the Election Finances Act. Elections Ontario does not administer

[1:06:31] local elections, but they do have a role to play in providing up-to-date voter

[1:06:35] list information to local partners. Since January 1st of 2024, the Chief

[1:06:40] Electoral Officer, Elections Ontario, has taken over the responsibility of

[1:06:45] preparing voters list from MPAC and will manage a permanent register of electors

[1:06:49] for both provincial and municipal elections.

[1:06:53] The voters list for each municipal election will be prepared using data

[1:06:57] from the permanent register of electors, the register

[1:07:01] maintained by Elections Ontario. Elections Ontario works with local

[1:07:04] partners to provide them with the most up-to-date voters list to support their

[1:07:08] elections. Voters across the province can update

[1:07:11] their information in the register for local and provincial elections.

[1:07:17] So, the voters list. The voters list becomes a public document on September

[1:07:20] the 1st, 2026. As a candidate, you can request that the municipal clerk give

[1:07:25] you uh the part of the voters list that relates to the office that you are

[1:07:29] running for. This request must be in writing. In order to receive the voters

[1:07:33] list from the municipal clerk, you must give a written acknowledgement of the

[1:07:37] following. You will only use the list for electoral

[1:07:40] purposes and not for commercial purposes. You are bound by the

[1:07:44] restrictions set out in the Municipal Elections Act relating to handling of

[1:07:48] the voters list. You will only share the list with

[1:07:51] others, such as campaign workers, after obtaining a similar written

[1:07:54] acknowledgement from them.

[1:07:59] So, candidate restrictions. You are the only person who may share the voters

[1:08:02] list. If you have given someone a copy, they are not allowed to share it

[1:08:06] further. You must keep track of who you have shared the voters list with. If you

[1:08:10] give someone a physical copy of the list, they must return uh the copy to

[1:08:14] you. If you share an electronic copy, they must destroy the copy and provide

[1:08:18] you with written acknowledgement that the copy has been destroyed.

[1:08:22] You cannot keep copies of the voters list after your campaign has ended. On

[1:08:27] or before the day your campaign ends, you must destroy the copy of the voters

[1:08:30] list that you received from the clerk. Have any printed copies that you shared

[1:08:34] with other people return to you and destroy them.

[1:08:37] Ensure you have received a written acknowledgement from anyone who received

[1:08:41] an electronic copy of the list that the electronic copy has been destroyed.

[1:08:47] So, a written acknowledgement. Before you share the voters list with someone,

[1:08:51] you must obtain a written acknowledgement from that person. That

[1:08:54] written acknowledgement must confirm the following. They will only use the list

[1:08:58] for electoral purposes and not for for purposes. They will not share or give

[1:09:02] copies of the list to anyone else. If they receive a physical copy of the

[1:09:06] list, they will return it to you. If they received an electronic copy of

[1:09:09] the list, they will destroy that copy and give you a written acknowledgement

[1:09:12] that the electronic copy has been destroyed.

[1:09:15] The written acknowledgement should set out the dates by which people must

[1:09:19] return physical copies or give you written confirmation that the electronic

[1:09:22] copies have been destroyed. You must keep the records of the written

[1:09:26] acknowledgements that you have received until November 15th of 2030 when the

[1:09:30] next council or school board uh takes office. You must also keep any written

[1:09:35] confirmations that electronic copies of the list have been destroyed.

[1:09:41] Okay, so uh scrutineers, recounts, key dates, and resources.

[1:09:45] So, scrutineers, only a candidate may appoint scrutineers to represent them

[1:09:50] during the voting and the vote uh the counting of votes, including during a

[1:09:54] recount. Third-party advertisers cannot appoint

[1:09:58] scrutineers. In the traditional election where voting

[1:10:01] takes place at a poll, the DRO is in charge of the activity in the voting

[1:10:05] place, and the DRO may ask the scrutineer to leave if the DRO believes

[1:10:10] the scrutineer is not complying with the legislation.

[1:10:13] Under section 48 of the Municipal Elections Act, in a voting place, no

[1:10:17] person shall attempt directly or indirectly um sorry, no person shall

[1:10:22] attempt to directly or indirectly to influence how the vote the elector is

[1:10:26] voting. Candidates and scrutineers should

[1:10:29] respect that the DRO must ensure fairness, access, privacy, and security

[1:10:34] of the vote. Uh so, just a tip, check with the clerk

[1:10:37] to see if a list of scrutineers' rights is being given to election staff at the

[1:10:41] poll. If so, use the list or prepare your own to give to each of your

[1:10:45] scrutineers so they can learn their rights. These rights are spelled out in

[1:10:49] section 47 sub five of the Municipal Elections Act.

[1:10:54] Recounts. A recount is automatic if the vote is

[1:10:58] tied. Councils have the option of establishing

[1:11:01] policies prior to the election that also allow for an automatic recount.

[1:11:06] Council still retains the option to pass a resolution for a recount within 30

[1:11:10] days after the clerk has declared the results of the election.

[1:11:14] An eligible elector can apply to the courts for a recount within 30 days of

[1:11:19] the clerk's declaration of the results.

[1:11:24] So, some key dates. Voting day is Monday, October 26th, 2026 between 10:00

[1:11:29] a.m. and 8:00 p.m. unless reduced hours are set by the clerk for retirement

[1:11:33] homes and certain institutions or the clerks decide uh decides to open voting

[1:11:37] places earlier than 10:00 a.m. The campaign period, so the time when a

[1:11:41] candidate can accept contributions and incur election expenses, runs from the

[1:11:46] date the nomination is submitted up until December 31st, 2026.

[1:11:51] The campaign period, so the time the third-party advertiser can

[1:11:55] uh incur expenses, begins on the date their registration is certified.

[1:11:59] Earliest is May 1st, so this Friday, until December 31st, 2026.

[1:12:04] The deadline for filing of the campaign financial statement in the clerk's

[1:12:07] office is Tuesday, March 30th of 2027, no later than 2:00 p.m.

[1:12:13] All candidates and third-party advertisers must file the statement

[1:12:16] regardless of how much they spent or received in contributions.

[1:12:22] So, resources. So, the first few links uh will take you to the E-Laws website

[1:12:26] where all provincial legis- legislation is available, including the associated

[1:12:30] regulations. Uh you will want to be familiar with the

[1:12:33] Municipal Elections Act, the Municipal Act, Municipal Conflict of Interest Act,

[1:12:38] and if you're running for a school board, the Education Act.

[1:12:41] The second link is to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing website.

[1:12:45] From this site, you will be able to access the 2026 Voters' Guide, the 2026

[1:12:50] Candidates' Guide, and the 2026 third-party advertisers' guide.

[1:12:54] And then the final link there is for the Municipal World website. If you click on

[1:12:59] the icon bookshop, it illustrates a list of books that are related to running for

[1:13:04] municipal office and they're available for purchase online.

[1:13:09] And that brings us to the end of our presentation. So we'll take any

[1:13:13] questions if you have any and up there on the screen is actually our contact

[1:13:17] information. So I am the municipal advisor for the County of Middlesex, so

[1:13:21] feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions like after the session.

[1:13:25] You can also reach out to Spencer. He's a senior municipal advisor, so

[1:13:28] feel free to contact either one of us. But with that, we'll turn it over if

[1:13:31] anybody has any questions.

[1:13:35] Yes. Yes, my question is around the

[1:13:40] requirements. I noticed last week through the

[1:13:44] it was at home but I thought the association of the municipality of

[1:13:48] Ontario for

[1:13:50] nominations for the board. I also know that in the Corporations Act

[1:13:54] of Ontario, you cannot serve as a board and the director on the

[1:13:59] board if you've been bankrupt. So I'm not sure if you can speak to

[1:14:02] this, but that's not a criteria here and I just

[1:14:05] wondered like one of our responsibilities of the council is a

[1:14:09] fiduciary responsibility. So I wondered if you could speak to that.

[1:14:14] So that like the eligibility requirements don't

[1:14:16] include those, you know, any bankruptcies or even having been

[1:14:22] convicted of an offense, criminal offense. Of course, if you're serving

[1:14:25] time in an institution, you know, so a provincial or maybe a federal

[1:14:29] correctional institution, you obviously wouldn't be eligible

[1:14:33] to run or serve on council. However, declaring bankruptcy by itself

[1:14:37] is not, you know, would make you ineligible to

[1:14:42] run for council. Yes, question.

[1:14:49] Yes. >> Yeah.

[1:14:53] Definitely. It's an interesting thing AMO that by itself that like it's a

[1:14:56] separate organization, right? So, it has no, you know,

[1:14:59] uh connection to the province in that

[1:15:01] sense. Uh so, yeah, they can certainly make

[1:15:04] their own rules as to would serve on board. Oh, yeah. No, it's it's an

[1:15:09] interesting observation. Any other questions?

[1:15:17] Okay. Well, I know if you're anything like me, you're going to be driving home

[1:15:19] tonight and you're thinking, "Oh, I really want to ask this." So, again,

[1:15:22] don't hesitate. Reach out to us anytime. It's fine. Uh as I always like to say,

[1:15:26] it's free to contact us. I'm not going to charge you anything. Uh and the very

[1:15:29] worst thing you're ever going to hear me say is no.

[1:15:32] Uh so, yeah, don't hesitate. That's what we're here for.

[1:15:36] Oh. Thank you.

[1:15:42] Yeah. Thank you.

[1:15:44] Sorry. Thank you.

[1:15:47] Uh for everyone I haven't met yet, my name

[1:15:48] is Marcy Vinich and I'm the director of legislative services and clerk for

[1:15:52] Middlesex County. Uh I just want to thank uh the ministry staff for being

[1:15:55] here, Spencer and Jody. That was awesome and very informative.

[1:15:59] Uh as a county clerk, I don't have the privilege of running an election, so I

[1:16:02] learned a lot tonight. Um and thank you to Paul Shipway, our CEO,

[1:16:06] and Tiffany Ferrell um for that introductory presentation. We will move

[1:16:10] on to the next portion of our evening. Uh we'll have our clerks booths set up,

[1:16:16] so if anyone has additional questions, we'll be happy to answer those.

Joint Middlesex County Candidate Information Session - 2026 Municipal Election

Transcript