Frequently Asked Questions

A candidate cannot run for both mayor and municipal council. They must choose one or the other. A candidate can, however, run for DEA while also being a candidate for mayor or municipal council.

The Mayor, Council members and members of the DEA do not need to resign in order to run. Council and DEA terms end at noon the day after the election.

Declared candidates will be listed on this site in the month prior to the election. It is their responsibility to make information about their candidacy (experience, priorities, etc.) available to voters in their municipality. This can take different forms, like flyers, door-to-door visits, or meetings.

At your local polling station in Apex, you will be able to vote for your local DEA, and also vote for council and mayor for the municipality of Iqaluit, of which you are a part. Alternatively, if you are eligible, you may vote in the Commission scolaire francophone du Nunavut (CSFN) elections.

You can vote for members of the CSFN if you are a French-language rights holder, by meeting one of the criteria mentioned in article 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms:

• Your native language is French (the first language learned and still understood);
• You received your education at the elementary level in a French-language education institution in Canada;
• You are the parent (guardian) of a child who has received or receives their education at the elementary or secondary level in a French-language education institution in Canada.

AND you are:

• 18 years old or older
• Resident of Nunavut for at least one year
• Not voting in any other DEA election

The only school currently administered by the CSFN is in Iqaluit, however any person in Nunavut who is eligible may vote in CSFN elections. The Minister of Education may assist Elections Nunavut in registering voters for the CSFN elections.

In June 2017, a legislative proposal (Bill 49) was passed, bringing municipal council, mayoral and DEA elections election rules into the Nunavut Elections Act, and making Elections Nunavut responsible for overseeing those local elections in addition to the territorial ones they already managed. The purpose of the new legislation is to harmonize the municipal and territorial rules as much as possible, and in doing so, make all elections simpler and more efficient going forward.

Municipal councils are responsible for the municipality’s budget, as well as services like animal control, employment, roads, water, sewage, and recreation. Normally a council has eight councillors and a mayor, all of whom are elected locally.

A District Education Authority (DEA) is a committee composed of seven members who have been elected locally. It meets once a month and, in partnership with Region School Operations and school staff, is responsible for deciding how education is administered in the community. Duties include establishing the school calendar, and developing an attendance policy. The Commission scolaire francophone du Nunavut is also a DEA, but it has five members instead of seven. Read more about DEAs.

If there is a tie, or if the difference between the elected and not elected candidate is less than 5 votes, the Returning Officer does an administrative recount. If there is still a tie after the administrative recount the Returning officer will either choose a winner by draw if the candidates agree or apply for a recount by Justice of the Peace. If the Justice of the Peace conducts a recount and one candidate obtained a higher number of votes than any other, that candidate is declared elected.  If, on the other hand, there is still a tie in the number of votes, the Justice of the Peace will choose a winner by draw.

A declaration of indebtedness confirms if someone owes money to the municipal corporation.  The Chief Electoral Officer provides direction to every mayor or councillor prospective candidate that they must complete a declaration of indebtedness before being accepted as a candidate. This ensures the eligibility requirement under section 224 of the Nunavut Elections Act is verified for every mayor and councillor candidate.

An administrative recount is when the Returning Officer will automatically conduct a recount if the number of votes between a winning and losing candidate is less than 5 votes.

The next municipal General Election will be on October 23, 2023.

You can consult the map of municipalities, which will be available during the election period. There will be no Voter Information Cards sent out before the Municipal elections.

Candidate: If there are 25 votes or less between an elected and not elected candidate, the candidate who was not elected may ask the Chief Electoral Officer to conduct a recount. This request must be made within 4 days after the results are made public.

Voter:  If a voter believes that an election officer did not count the votes correctly or made a mistake adding up the votes, the voter can apply to a Justice of the Peace to conduct a recount. This request must be made within 4 days after the results are made public.

In accordance with the Nunavut Elections Act, there will no longer be by-elections for municipal councillors or District Education Authority (DEA) members. Instead, replacement councillors or members will be selected either from candidates who were not elected, or from eligible applicants. If a mayoral seat becomes vacant, another mayor is chosen either through a by-election or by appointment from someone already on council.

No. Municipalities are mapped out differently than constituencies. While there may be geographical overlap between the two types of electoral districts, they are not the same. There are 25 municipalities in Nunavut, and only 22 constituencies.