The Week: Comox, Cumberland appointments pass, but no word on Courtenay … yet

The Week: Comox, Cumberland appointments pass, but no word on Courtenay … yet

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The Week: Comox, Cumberland appointments pass, but no word on Courtenay … yet

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Sometimes, it’s good to be wrong. Last week, Decafnation predicted that the conservative, pro-development majority on the Comox Council would override Mayor Nicole Minions’ recommendation to appoint re-elected Councillor Dr. Jonathan Kerr to one of the town’s two regional board seats.

And so it appeared, right up until the start of the meeting that the Ken Grant alliance was going to spoil the new mayor’s first official act. But they did not. Instead, they voted in favor of all her regional board and other council appointments.

Grant’s Group might have weighed the risks of wielding their power too soon, especially with about 20 of Kerr’s poll-topping supporters packed into the council chambers. And then there was the negative optics of taking on a first-time, second-ever woman mayor on her first day on the job to consider.

But whatever the group’s true motives were, letting the mayor pick her team was the right thing to do.

We said in our commentary last week that this vote would reveal something about the new council. Is it too much to hope that we’ll have a collaborative local government in Comox this term?

In his inaugural address last night, Courtenay Mayor Bob Wells noted the city’s voters had expressed their approval of the last council’s progress over their four years in office and that public expectations would be even higher for the new and mostly renewed council.

It was especially important, we think, that Wells also recognized that the role of municipal governments has shifted beyond land use, water and sewer, roads and parks and recreation. He said local governments today must also address other issues such as mental health, addiction and affordable housing.

But Wells did not recommend any council appointments to boards and committees because, we are told, some councillors want further discussions with the mayor about their next year’s role. Perhaps more than four councillors want the regional district appointments and Wells doesn’t want to create conflict by letting the seat assignments go to a vote in a public meeting.

But the regional district’s inaugural meeting is next Tuesday, so expect something to get settled before then.

In Cumberland, the Village Council approved new Mayor Vickey Brown’s appointments last night.

Councillor Jesse Ketler was re-appointed to the village’s one regional board seat, Councillor Sean Sullivan will serve as her alternate. Ketler has chaired the Comox Valley Regional District board for the last few years.

Ketler will also serve as the village’s primary representative on the Comox Valley Recreation Commission, while Sullivan will serve on the Comox Strathcona Regional Hospital District Board and the Comox Strathcona Waste Management Board.

Mayor Brown will take on the Comox Valley Regional District Parks and Trails Committee assignment with new Councillor Troy Therrien serving as her alternate.

You can see Mayor Brown’s full appointment list here.

YAY – To Gladstone Brewing Company for taking top honors at the recent annual BC Beer Awards held in Vancouver. They were named the 2022 Brewery of the Year. They also won four gold awards and one silver for individual types of beers.

YAY – For getting down to the home stretch toward construction of the new Sewer Conveyance Project, which is still on schedule to begin next spring. The CVRD engineering group held its first session in this last round of public information events yesterday at the Little Red Church in Comox. There’s another one there at 4 pm on Thursday of this week, Nov. 10, and a final session at 4.30 pm next Thursday, Nov. 17 at the CVRD offices in Courtenay. There is also a Webinar on Monday, Nov. 14.

BOO – It looks like a rough winter, and we’re not talking about the weather. According to U. S. public health officials, people should brace for a “tripledemic” this year of a resurgence of Covid, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus. We’re buying a new supply of face masks.

 

 

 

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Let’s put one of the craziest Comox Valley elections into the history book, and then close it

Let’s put one of the craziest Comox Valley elections into the history book, and then close it

Let’s put one of the craziest Comox Valley elections into the history book, and then close it

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Well, that was fun. Or was it? On the surface, the 2022 local government election should go down as one of the most unusual, maybe even the craziest campaign in Comox Valley history.

We had gun-toting Trumpers, Freedom Convoy Truckers and climate change deniers. We had women claiming our schools were grooming children for sexual exploitation. We had long-winded rants on social media over racism and sexual health education. We had groups of wannabe players that were afraid to show their faces.

We had candidates running for office in places where they don’t live because they think they know better than the people who live there. We had two secret political action groups pretending they represented the views of the average Valleyite when they really represented no more than their little clubs.

We had signs that violated city bylaws by a candidate who displayed them recklessly. And we had candidates, mostly of the conservative, pro-development persuasion, that boycotted public debates.

It was weird.

But when the sun rose on Sunday, Oct. 16, Comox Valley voters had made it clear they liked the direction charted by our local governments over the last four years. In the municipalities, they elected all but two incumbents. In most races, the vote was a definite pat on the back for a job well done.

The rest of it was just meaningless noise.

But there was something new and disturbing this year. It was the idea that telling a lie or otherwise intentionally spreading misinformation should be considered an acceptable campaign tactic. And those advancing this idea justified it because, they said, the underlying purpose of telling lies is to start public conversations about legitimate issues.

When Take Back Comox Valley (TBCV) ran social media ads and stated on its website that some unidentified local council members are trying to defund the police and had taken money from the Rockefeller Brothers Foundation via the Dogwood citizen action network, they were telling a lie. They have no proof of either claim.

In fact, a founding member of TBCV told Decafnation that he knew the defunding the police claim wasn’t true and had disagreed with the majority of the group about telling that lie. But he went along with it because, you know, the mob rules.

And they rationalized telling the lie because it’s just a big joke. Nobody actually expects it to be true. It’s just part of the game. Just like Trump claiming he won the US election. Just like Freedom truckers creating a fake letter from Prime Minister Trudeau or spreading the lie that Ottawa police officers were exempt from vaccine mandates.

It’s a reckless game that degrades public discourse. It turns voters off and diminishes the integrity of democratic elections. Those who play it sacrifice all claim to principle.

There were no meaningful community conversations created by TBCV. They encouraged no consequential dialogue and proposed no resolutions to the issues they raised. A quick look at their Facebook page shows a lot of angry and vitriolic invective thrown back and forth.

Most of the TBCV’s contempt was directed at the Courtenay council, which was wholeheartedly vindicated by voters and given a strong mandate to continue its work.

So what was achieved by telling the lies other than to have a laugh?

Fortunately, the people who cared enough to vote didn’t get the joke.

 

A CHANGING POPULACE

Has the mainstream of Comox Valley politics turned slightly left?

New Democratic Party candidates have won the last two provincial elections and the last three federal elections in our ridings. Progressive candidates won majorities on municipal councils in Courtenay and Cumberland in the last two elections and in Comox and the rural electoral areas in 2018.

In terms of which political parties voters have supported, a shift has definitely occurred. But why?

One reason might be found in this story. A Courtenay incumbent told Decafnation that they had knocked on 3,000 doors over the last four weeks and had spoken with many new Valley residents. The general consensus among those new residents was that they love it here and see comparatively fewer problems than where they previously lived.

The newcomers laugh at our traffic issues. They’ve already accepted the introduction of bike lanes. They’ve seen real traffic congestion, more serious crime and the problems associated with unsheltered people. They know these things exist everywhere.

So, maybe it’s not an ideological change that has occurred, but growth in the number of people who have had broader and more diverse life experiences. Maybe our issues don’t seem as problematic to them as they might to people who haven’t lived anywhere else.

Maybe what we’ve been labeling “progressive” is now the mainstream perspective of Comox Valley voters.

 

OTHER THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS ELECTION

It’s too bad more people don’t appreciate the difference a mayor and council can make in their lives. Voter turnout for local government elections has always been low, but this year it was really low.

We don’t know why, but the turnout was lower across the board. Perhaps it was because of an uninspiring race for mayor of Courtenay – Bob Wells didn’t have any serious competition. Or maybe because there was no mayor’s race in Comox – Nicole Minions was acclaimed.

Maybe it was because there weren’t many all-candidates debates and something like half the candidates refused to show up anyway. If the candidates don’t give a damn about the process, then why should voters?

Maybe a few of the candidates disgusted people about local politics. The Comox Valley Mainstream and Take Back Comox Valley groups might have turned people off.

Maybe it was just the nice October weather.

But you know something’s in the air when the number of eligible voters in Cumberland more than doubles from 2018 but fewer than half as many voters turn out in 2022. Voter engagement dropped by 50.9 percent in the Village, according to data from Civic Info BC.

Twenty-one percent fewer voters turned out in Courtenay. Twenty-two percent fewer in Comox. Slightly lower in the rural areas.

Having fewer candidates on the ballot might help. Too many candidates seem to overwhelm voters. It looks like too much work to find out about each candidate and what they stand for.

We could start to pare down the ballot by requiring a candidate’s residency in the jurisdiction where they seek public office.

It’s a double standard, as one Capital City voter put it. “I have to prove that I reside in Victoria to vote for a candidate who doesn’t. Huh?”

On the other hand, interest in the School District 71 Board of Education quadrupled. In 2018, only 4,392 ballots were cast, partly because four of the seven trustee seats were filled by acclamation. But this year, 11,472 ballots were cast, and only two seats went by acclamation.

Why such a huge and sudden interest? Maybe because several incumbents retired and more seats were up for grabs.

More likely, though, it was the age-old debate over sexual health education. Several candidates strongly opposed sexual health education in our schools and made wild claims about teachers encouraging kids to become gay males or lesbians and to engage in ‘deviant behavior.’

Yeah, that campaign platform might have brought out a large backlash of voters from the bulk of people who support LGBTQ rights and policies.

Daniel Arbour received 80.2 percent of the vote (1,807 votes) in Electoral Area A. That was the largest percentage of support for a regional district director in all of BC. Well, except for incumbent Gerald Whalley who received 96 percent of the vote (215 votes) to represent Kyuquot/Nootka-Sayward in the Strathcona Regional District.

“I attribute this to being thorough and proactive on all the issues facing Area A’s five communities,” he told Decafnation. “People also appreciate my positive engagement at the provincial and federal levels on municipal-related issues, and bringing forward authentic policy proposals for our region and beyond.”

The loss of Arzeena Hamir in Area B will be deeply felt in the Valley, especially in her leadership relating to environmental, food, and social policy issues. She lost by 23 votes to Richard Hardy, who will be the first K’omoks First Nation member of the Comox Valley Regional District board.

 

 

 

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Here’s the latest Comox Valley local government election results

Mayor Bob Wells and all Courtenay incumbent councillors have been re-elected. Evan Jolicoeur has also been elected. Manno Theos has lost his seat.

Jonathan Kerr, Jenn Meilleur, Steve Blacklock, Chris Haslett, Ken Grant and Maureen Swift have been elected in Comox.

Vickey Brown has been elected mayor in Cumberland, defeating long-time mayor and councillor Leslie Baird.

Voting down -20.6% in Courtenay, -22.3% in Comox and -50.9% in Cumberland.

Full results with Electoral Areas A, B and C, school board and Islands Trust results in the morning.

Daniel Arbour in Area A and Edwin Grieve in Area C won by wide margins. Richard Hardy defeated Arzeena Hamir by 23 votes.

Shannon Aldinger topped the polls in races for SD71 school trustees.

Click the headline on this page for complete results and voter turnout.

Our recommendations in the 2022 Comox Valley local government elections

Decafnation announces its list of preferred candidates in this year’s local government elections and for the first time we identify candidates that we think show promise and provide our reasons for not endorsing the other candidates. Our endorsements fall on the first day of voting at advance polls

Here’s the latest Comox Valley local government election results

ELECTION 2022

Here are the latest preliminary results from Civic Info BC. A * preceding a candidate’s name indicates an incumbent. Decafnation will update results as they become available. The boldface type indicates elected candidates.

VOTING DATA 2022

COURTENAY: 5,854 votes cast; 25.9% turnout of eligible voters

COMOX:  3,412 votes cast; 28.5% turnout

CUMBERLAND:  1,420 votes cast; 41.9% turnout

CVRD:  5,245 votes cast; 26.2% turnout

VOTING DATA 2018

COURTENAY:  7,372 votes cast; 37.1% turnout of eligible voters

COMOX:  4,392 votes cast; 40.4% turnout

CUMBERLAND:  2,892 votes cast; 48.0% turnout

CVRD:  Voter turnout per electoral area not available; 29.1% overall

COURTENAY

MAYOR

*Bob Wells: 3,277

Erik Eriksson 1,802

Aaron Dowker: 751

COUNCIL

*Doug Hillian: 3,067

*Will Cole-Hamilton: 3,066

Evan Jolicoeur3,049

*Melanie McCollum: 2,920

*Wendy Morin: 2,868

*David Frisch: 2,448

Brennan Day: 2,223

Jin Lin: 2,150

*Manno Theos: 2,118

Starr Winchester: 2,056

Deana Simpkin: 1,479

Steffan Chmuryk: 702

Phil Adams: 977

MIchael Gilbert: 796

Lyndsey Northcott: 684

 

COMOX

MAYOR

Nicole Minions: Acclaimed

COUNCIL

*Jonathan Kerr: 2,607

Jenn Meilleur: 1,937

Steve Blacklock1,922

*Maureen Swift: 1,764

*Ken Grant: 1,716

Chris Haslett: 1,411

Peter Gibson: 1,184

Kealy Donaldson:  1,089

Don Davis: 761

Ruby S: 750

 

CUMBERLAND

MAYOR

Vickey Brown817

*Leslie Baird: 599

COUNCIL

*Jesse Ketler: 1,116

*Sean Sullivan: 1,005

Troy Therrien: 946

Neil Borecky: 883

Tanis Frame: 596

 

CVRD RURAL

Area A

*Daniel Arbour: 1,807

Tamara Meggitt: 346

Gordon Kennedy: 99

Area B

Richard Hardy: 766

*Arzeena Hamir: 743

Keith Stevens: 89

Area C

*Edwin Grieve: 1,039

Matthew Ellis: 356

THE SCHOOL DISTRICT 71 — BOARD OF EDUCATION

COURTENAY

*Janice Caton: 1,985

Shannon Aldinger: 2,992

Anita Devries: 1,702

Jasmine Willard: 1,168

 

COMOX

Susan Leslie: 1,396

Vicky Trill: 705

Randi Baldwin: 426

 

CUMBERLAND

*Sarah Howe: Acclaimed

AREA A

Chelsea McCannel-Keene: 1,112

*Kat Hawksby: 476

Keith Porteous: 362

AREA B

*Michelle Waite: Acclaimed

AREA C

*Cristi Sacht: 600

Kendall Packham: 540

THE ISLANDS TRUST

DENMAN

David Graham: 387

Sam Borthwick: 359

*David Critchley: 246

Wesley Ritter: 55

HORNBY

Alex Allen:  323

Grant Scott: 286

Jeffrey Rabena:  269

 

Our recommendations in the 2022 Comox Valley local government elections

Our recommendations in the 2022 Comox Valley local government elections

Our recommendations in the 2022 Comox Valley local government elections

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In local government elections, the official campaign period lasts a mere four weeks. For some people, that’s long enough and they can’t wait for all the signs to come down and for hopeful candidates to stop knocking on their door.

But that isn’t really much time at all for such an important event as choosing the future of your community.

But we understand that voting can be a difficult task. It takes a concerted effort to scope out which candidates will best represent your views because you don’t get a lot of help. There are too few all-candidate forums this year that allow you to assess and compare the candidates in person. That leaves local news outlets and social media as the primary distributors of helpful information.

Decafnation tried to interact with as many candidates as our resources permitted this year but we found it disheartening that some candidates refused to collaborate with us. While most candidates did respond to our questionnaires and answer questions via email, an unusual number of candidates did not.

We think that reflects a prevailing mood in this year’s local elections that turned dark and menacing after the ultra-conservative and secretive group Take Back Comox Valley published advertisements that contained intentional misinformation.

Our candidate interactions, or the lack of them, have played a crucial role in determining which candidates we recommend today.

Some observations about our recommendations.

Four years ago, we generally supported qualified younger candidates because they are the ones who will have to live with the decisions our local governments make today. We respectfully encouraged the old horses in the race that their time had passed and that it was now time to let go.

Voters had similar thoughts, electing all but four of the candidates we endorsed for the region’s 22 local government positions. We did not endorse for school district trustees.

This year, we are again supporting that youthful and progressive movement so that they may complete their four years of work charting a path for the future of the Comox Valley suited to this modern time.

For example, the candidates we’ve endorsed understand that municipal-level decisions must always improve our adaptation to climate change.

That means, among other things, creating the opportunity to move around our communities without using a car, preserving a larger tree canopy, not giving in to urban sprawl and protecting future taxpayers from the unnecessary infrastructure debt it creates and supporting every practical policy to shift away from consuming fossil fuels.

We believe the local governments you elected in 2018 have made important strides toward a better future for everyone who lives here and that they have earned the chance to continue this work for another term.

It is the responsibility of incumbents to defend their record and it is the job of challengers to show why they would do better. This year, the challengers have failed to make that case.

Decafnation realizes that some readers won’t agree with our choices. We’re okay with that. Information, not persuasion, is our objective. 

We admire and congratulate everyone who’s stood for election. It takes courage and love of community.

Finally, look for our coverage of the District 71 Board of Education election, and endorsements, later this week.

Now, here are our recommendations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ADVANCE VOTING BEGINS TODAY. READ ON FOR TIMES AND PLACES IN YOUR AREA

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WHERE AND WHEN TO VOTE

General Voting Day is Saturday, Oct. 15 for all local government positions.

Comox Valley Regional District

General Voting Day and advance voting take place at the CVRD building in Courtenay from 8 am to 8 pm.

Go to this link for General Voting Day locations in the three Electoral Areas.

Additional voting takes place on Oct. 6 from 9 am to 12 pm on Denman Island and on Oct. 6 from 2 pm to 5 pm on Hornby Island

Courtenay

Advance Voting begins on Wednesday October 5, 2022, 8 am to 8 pm at the Native Sons Hall, and again on Wednesday October 12, 2022, 8 am to 8 pm at the Florence Filberg Centre.

General Voting Day, Saturday, October 15, 2022, 8 am to 8 pm at the Queneesh Elementary School, and at the Florence Filberg Centre.

Comox

Advance voting begins Wednesday, October 5 from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. at the Comox Community Centre, and on Saturday, October 8 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Genoa Sail Building at Comox Marina, and again on Monday, October 10 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Genoa Sail Building at Comox Marina, and on Wednesday, October 12 from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. at the Comox Community Centre.

General Voting Day runs from 8 am to 8 pm on Oct. 15 at the Comox Community Centre.

Cumberland

All voting in the Village of Cumberland takes place from 8 am to 8 pm at the Cumberland Cultural Centre. Advance voting takes place on Oct. 5 and Oct. 12

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The Week: Big Money wants its control back and a candidate wins 2022 Moronic award

The Week: Big Money wants its control back and a candidate wins 2022 Moronic award

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The Week: Big Money wants its control back and a candidate wins 2022 Moronic award

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We have to hand it to that vicious Big Money Gang that pooled their pocket change to launch some mean-spirited attack ads on social media. They took a page right out of Trumpville and tossed down some nasty smack, never mind that the ads made no sense – Reality check: nobody’s trying to defund the Comox Valley RCMP detachment! – these are just a handful of chickenshit middle school bullies who have more lunch money than you but want to steal your snacks anyway.

Well, they got the attention they wanted, but, like all angry people who feel entitled, they made themselves look like morons. That’s what happens when you abuse the privilege of free speech by spewing lies and misinformation and then hide behind anonymity.

Take Back Comox Valley was smart enough, however, to schedule their smear campaign before the official “campaign period” began on Sept. 17. Elections BC tells Decafnation that it received a complaint about the Take Back Comox Valley social media drivel several weeks ago, but the EBC determined the ads did not violate election advertising laws because they ran during the pre-campaign period (July 18 to Sept. 16). Mind boggling. Slapping them with a fine wouldn’t have made a difference anyway.

But here’s the interesting question, where do they think the Comox Valley went? And who do they want to Take it Back from?

Where did “their” Comox Valley go? It went away from them. Over the last two municipal elections, increased numbers of progressively-minded voters have elected progressively-minded people to the Valley’s councils and boards who had the gall, the audacity to start challenging the old way of doing things. And that pissed off the Big Money Gang. They lost their self-claimed right to control and now they want it back.

And what might they want do with that control? They apparently don’t want safer streets (17th Street), but they do want to pave more rural land. They don’t want affordable housing, they want to build more expensive single-family houses. They aren’t concerned about forcing future generations of local residents into enormous debt by extending infrastructure to service new subdivisions outside the urban boundaries, but they stamp their feet when the council has to maintain existing infrastructure (Fifth Street Bridge). And for God’s sake don’t get them started on climate change or social issues like public health orders, childcare or rainbow crosswalks because their heads will explode.

So who was it that took “their” Comox Valley? Well, it’s a safe bet it wasn’t the Village Council in Cumberland. That council has been almost pitch perfect with its community for quite some time, so it would have strong immunity to the advertisements’ violent denunciations. And it’s unlikely the Big Money Gang planned a hit on the Comox Town Council because until the last year the old guard has controlled that bunch of obstructionists through their council henchmen.

So it feels like the Big Money Gang has its crosshairs aimed squarely at the Courtenay City Council and the regional district directors in Areas A and B. These are three of the hotbeds that breed the progressive ideas that are moving the Comox Valley into the 21st Century, where forward-thinking people are planning for the serious and wide reaching adaptations necessary to accommodate our population growth, the changing employment environment, unrelenting social issues and our evolution into an era dominated by climate change.

The good news is that these progressive thinkers didn’t get elected by accident or mistake. They were chosen by an electorate that has itself become more progressive; to wit, climate change deniers are now the crazies on the fringe. In municipalities everywhere, progressive thinking has become the mainstream by necessity. Wildfires, floods and heat domes are forcing us to think and plan for the unthinkable, such as where our food comes from and how much water we have.

The mayor of Lytton has said that as a man in his 60s, he thought climate change was something the next generation had to worry about. “Now I’m the mayor of a town that doesn’t exist.”

And the even better news is that we the people have the ultimate weapon to keep the Big Money Gang from eating our lunch: a vote. If you don’t want the clock turned backwards on progress in the Comox Valley, then haul your ass out of the house and vote.

 

HEY, BRENNAN, PICK UP A PHONE

Decafnation got a big kick out of Courtenay council candidate Brennan Day trying to shrug off his trademark infringement – using the logos for the City of Courtenay and the province on a couple of his campaign signs – by saying in a Comox Valley Record article that he was doing it intentionally to get attention, which we have to say sounds like a lot of BS.

It appeared to us and many others that Day was trying to make his signs look more “official” while complaining about the cost of maintenance on the Fifth Street bridge and to improve safety conditions on 17th Street. Because without the logos and with just the word “misspent,” handwritten to look like graffiti, the sign looks like it came from a crackpot.

But that’s not the funny part. At the end of the article is a long quote from Day in which he admits he knew using the logos was wrong, but since he couldn’t find precise language in the city’s bylaws saying so, he did it anyway. And then he goes on to blame the city staff for not having a more clear bylaw. So, is it their fault he broke the law?

And, then in the most alarming statement ever, Day admits that he checked out the bylaws of other cities and found out that they clearly prohibit using city logos in campaign material.

What?!

He makes the effort to check the bylaws of other cities, where he learns they say no to using logos, but he doesn’t bother to pick up the phone and ask his own City Hall staff? Oh, that’s right, he doesn’t live in Courtenay. Still, it’s not a long distance call.

Well, anyway, Day wins our award for the Most Moronic Explanation That Turned Into a Giant Foot In The Mouth of the 2022 election campaign. So far.

In case you missed it, here’s the whole quote from the Record.

“To be fair, I did check into the municipal bylaws, and they are ambiguous as to the use (of city logos), or at least I couldn’t find it in my research, so I decided to try it. Obviously, they are covered up now… In a lot of other jurisdictions, they spell it out very clearly, that use of the city logos on campaign literature and advertising is not allowed. Courtenay seems that they are a little bit behind in their bylaws.”

Good grief.

 

CANDIDATE FORUMS

Want to watch and hear some candidates answer questions in person? Here’s a few public events we know about:

Climate change will be the focus of an all-candidates forum for the mayor and council candidates in Courtenay. The event is at 6.30 pm on Tuesday, Oct. 4 in the North Island College theater. It has been organized by NIC nursing students and the Canadian Association of Nurses for the Environment. The public is also invited to submit questions.

The Comox Valley Chamber of Commerce has planned a “Meet and Greet” for all council, regional district and school board candidates from 5 pm to 7 pm on Tuesday, Sept. 27 at the Courtenay & District Museum.

There will be a forum for positions on the School District 71 Board of Trustees at 6:30 pm in the All Purpose Room at G.P. Vanier Secondary School. The event has been organized by the District Parent Advisory Council (DPAC), the Comox District Teachers’ Association (CDTA), and The Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 439 (CUPE). You can submit questions in advance. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WHERE AND WHEN TO VOTE

General Voting Day is Saturday, Oct. 15 for all local government positions.

Comox Valley Regional District

General Voting Day (Saturday, Oct. 15) and advance voting (Wednesday Oct. 5 and Wednesday Oct. 12) take place at the CVRD building in Courtenay from 8 am to 8 pm.

Go to this link for General Voting Day locations in the three Electoral Areas.

Additional voting takes place on Oct. 6 from 9 am to 12 pm on Denman Island and on Oct. 6 from 2 pm to 5 pm on Hornby Island

Courtenay

Advance Voting begins on Wednesday October 5, 2022, 8 am to 8 pm at the Native Sons Hall, and again on Wednesday October 12, 2022, 8 am to 8 pm at the Florence Filberg Centre.

General Voting Day, Saturday, October 15, 2022, 8 am to 8 pm at the Queneesh Elementary School, and at the Florence Filberg Centre.

Comox

Advance voting begins Wednesday, October 5 from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. at the Comox Community Centre, and on Saturday, October 8 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Genoa Sail Building at Comox Marina, and again on Monday, October 10 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Genoa Sail Building at Comox Marina, and on Wednesday, October 12 from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. at the Comox Community Centre.

General Voting Day runs from 8 am to 8 pm on Oct. 15 at the Comox Community Centre.

Cumberland

All voting in the Village of Cumberland takes place from 8 am to 8 pm at the Cumberland Cultural Centre. Advance voting takes place on Oct. 5 and Oct. 12.

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Here’s the latest Comox Valley local government election results

Mayor Bob Wells and all Courtenay incumbent councillors have been re-elected. Evan Jolicoeur has also been elected. Manno Theos has lost his seat.

Jonathan Kerr, Jenn Meilleur, Steve Blacklock, Chris Haslett, Ken Grant and Maureen Swift have been elected in Comox.

Vickey Brown has been elected mayor in Cumberland, defeating long-time mayor and councillor Leslie Baird.

Voting down -20.6% in Courtenay, -22.3% in Comox and -50.9% in Cumberland.

Full results with Electoral Areas A, B and C, school board and Islands Trust results in the morning.

Daniel Arbour in Area A and Edwin Grieve in Area C won by wide margins. Richard Hardy defeated Arzeena Hamir by 23 votes.

Shannon Aldinger topped the polls in races for SD71 school trustees.

Click the headline on this page for complete results and voter turnout.

Our recommendations in the 2022 Comox Valley local government elections

Decafnation announces its list of preferred candidates in this year’s local government elections and for the first time we identify candidates that we think show promise and provide our reasons for not endorsing the other candidates. Our endorsements fall on the first day of voting at advance polls