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Elections 2026
Please note that this website will continue to be updated throughout the election process. Last update occurred June 30, 2026.
General Local Election Information
The next general election will be held on Saturday October 17, 2026.
All eligible residents and non-resident property electors of the City of Powell River will have opportunities to vote for:
1 Mayor
6 Councillors
5 Trustees for School District 47
Some key dates:
January 1: Election period begins
March 10: Candidate BC residency deadline
April 16: Voter BC residency deadline
August 4: Start of period for notice of nominations
August 19: Election and political signs may be posted within the City (except along Hwy 101)
September 1: Start of nomination period
September 11: End of nomination period; candidates declared
September 18: Last day for Candidates to withdraw
September 19: Start of campaign period and posting of election and political signs along Hwy 101
September 21: Declaration of election by voting or acclamation
October 7, 10, 14: Advance Voting Days
October 17: General Voting Day
October 17: Announcement of Preliminary Election Results
October 21: Last Day for Declaration of Official Election Results by Voting
Thinking of Running for Office?
The Local Government Branch of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing has excellent resources including videos and reading materials
Financing and Advertising
Elections BC is responsible for managing campaign financing disclosure requirements, investigations, registration of elector organizations and third-party advertising sponsors, and enforcing the campaign financing and third-party advertising provisions set out in the Local Elections Campaign Financing Act.
For more information, go to the Elections BC Website or contact them at 1-855-952-0280, or electoral.finance@elections.bc.ca.
Information Sessions: Online Information Sessions are being offered by Elections BC for Local Candidates, Third Party Sponsors and Local Elector Organizations. See: Elections BC Information Sessions.
Information for Voters
Voting rights are granted to citizens based on residency or property ownership. To be eligible to vote, you must be either a Resident Elector, or Non-Resident Property Elector.
A person cannot vote:
on behalf of a corporation,
as a non-resident property elector, when the property is owned wholly or in part by a corporation,
more than once for:
Mayor and Council for the City of Powell River
School Trustees for the Board of Education of School District 47 (regardless of the number of properties owned within the SD47 school trustee electoral area)
Provincial Voters List
The City of Powell River will be using the Provincial Voters List for the 2026 General Local Election. Are you registered to vote? Register or check your registration status here: Elections BC – Online Voter Registration. Electors can also register at a voting place during Advance Voting, on General Voting Day, or when requesting a mail ballot package.
Resident Electors:
are 18 years of age or older on General Voting Day,
are Canadian citizens
have lived in BC for at least six months before they register to vote
are residents of the City of Powell River on the day they vote
must not be disqualified under the Local Government Act, or any other enactment*, from voting.
* Tla’amin residents are eligible to vote in school trustee elections conducted by the qathet Regional District (qRD) if they meet voter eligibility requirements under the School Act.
Non-Resident Property Electors (NRPE):
When a person lives in one jurisdiction and owns property in another jurisdiction, they may vote in the other jurisdiction as a Non-Resident Property Elector (NRPE), provided they meet the voter eligibility requirements noted below. NRPEs:
are 18 years of age or older on General Voting Day
are Canadian citizens
have lived in BC for at least 6 months immediately prior to General Voting Day
have owned property in the City of Powell River for at least 30 days
are not a resident of the City of Powell River
are not disqualified by law from voting
are not entitled to vote more than once in an election
If a person owns a property with one or more other individuals, only one person is eligible to vote as the non-resident property elector for that property; the owner entitled to vote must be designated, in writing, by the majority of the property owners.
For example: Mary, a Canadian citizen, and her husband have lived in Lund for 20 years and have owned a property in the City of Powell River for the past 3 months; she can vote as a resident for the Area Director in the Electoral Area A election in Lund and for Mayor and Council in the City, if her husband consents to her being the NRPE for their Powell River Property. However, she cannot vote for school trustee in both jurisdictions as it’s the same school district electoral area and she can only vote once in that election, and must do so within the jurisdiction in which she is resident.
* For local election purposes, residents of Tla’amin Nation may vote for Mayor and Council in the City election if they meet the NRPE eligibility requirements, but would have to vote at the Tla’amin polling place for the school trustee election.
Previous Election Information
CivicInfo BC maintains information on previous local elections.
Questions
Please contact our staff with any other questions:
Chief Election Officer: Peter DeJong
Deputy Chief Election Officer: Jessica Walls