Local Elections

There are many opportunities to vote in your local election. These include advanced voting opportunities, mail-in voting opportunities, special voting opportunities, as well as the voting opportunity on General Election Day (October 17th, 2026). Dates will be announced during the election period, which you will be able to find on this page in the 'public notices' section. 
 

Voting locations are made as accessible as possible to people with disabilities or impaired mobility. Individuals who find it difficult to enter a voting location may request a ballot be brought to them in the parking lot or at curbside of the Recreation Complex by an Election Official. 

Individuals unable to mark their own ballot or who require a translator may ask an Election Official, friend, or relative for assistance. Anyone helping an elector with filling out a ballot will be required to sign a Declaration of Persons Assisting an Elector to Mark a Ballot form. 

An Additional General Voting Opportunity will be held for electors, who for medical reasons or because of physical limitations cannot leave their residence on general voting day, by having a mobile voting place operated by the City of Prince Rupert voting staff attend the residence of such an elector to allow that person to vote. Requests to have a mobile voting station attend a residence on general voting day (October 17^th) must be received by the Chief Election Officer or Deputy Chief Election Officer or designate, before 5:00 pm on October 15^th, 2026. 

Please contact us via email to request a mobile voting opportunity at election@princerupert.ca or by calling (250) 627 0937 before the deadline. 

(Information below has been taken directly from the Province of BC, here)

Provincial legislation gives eligible B.C. residents the right to vote in general local elections and by-elections. This right is subject to certain restrictions, limitations and requirements. Additionally, local governments are required to provide access to voting, through various opportunities, such as an advance voting day.

Voting rights are granted to citizens based on residency or property ownership. There is no corporate or business vote in local elections.

Resident electors

In order to be eligible to vote in general local elections or by-elections as a resident or non-resident property elector, a person must:

• Be 18 years of age or older when they register to vote, or 18 years or older on general voting day
• Be a Canadian citizen
• Have been a resident of B. C. by April 16^th, 2026 for the 2026 local election
• Be a resident of the municipality or electoral area on the day they register to vote; and
• Not be disqualified under the Local Government Act, or any other enactment from voting in local elections or be otherwise disqualified by law

Non-resident property electors

When a person lives in one jurisdiction and owns property in one or more other jurisdictions, they may vote once in each of the other jurisdictions where they own property - as long as they meet the voter eligibility requirements.

A non-resident property elector must:

• Be 18 years of age or older when they register to vote, or 18 years or older on general voting day
• Be a Canadian citizen
• Have been a resident of B. C. by April 16^th, 2026 for the 2026 local election
• Be the registered owner of real property in the jurisdiction where they intend to vote for at least 30 days immediately before they register to vote and
• Not be disqualified under the Local Government Act, or any other enactment from voting in local elections or be otherwise disqualified by law

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.

A person cannot vote on behalf of a corporation, or as a non-resident property elector, based on a property owned wholly or in part by a corporation.

Students

Students who live in one jurisdiction and attend an educational institution in a jurisdiction different from their usual place of residence may vote only once--either in the jurisdiction where they attend school or in the jurisdiction that is their usual place of residence.

Voter Ineligibility

Resident electors and non-resident property electors are not eligible to vote in a local election if they:

• Have been convicted and sentenced for an indictable offence and are in custody
• Have been found guilty of an election offence, such as intimidation or vote-buying
• Do not otherwise meet voter eligibility requirements
• Voter's Guide to Local Elections in B.C. (PDF, 386KB)

Local Elections Legislation

• Local Government Act
• Local Election Campaign Financing Act​
• Community Charter
• Vancouver Charter​
• School Act
• Offence Act

Elections BC has provided the following list of key dates and milestones to consider in the upcoming 2026 election. 

Are you eligible to vote in the October elections for Prince Rupert? Is your name on the current list of electors?  If you are not sure you can find out by calling Elections BC at 1-800-661-8683. 

The City uses the Provincial List of Voters. Advance elector registrations will be accepted at elections.bc.ca/ovr until Tuesday, August 18th, 2026. Otherwise registration can be done on voting day. 

• 18 years of age or older on general voting day for the election or assent voting; and
• a Canadian citizen; and
• a resident of British Columbia for at least 6 months immediately before the day of registration; and
• a resident of the City of Prince Rupert; and
• not disqualified under the Local Government Act or any other enactment from voting in an election or assent voting and not otherwise disqualified by law.

Are you a non-resident property owner eligible to vote at the October Elections for Mayor, Councillor and School Board Trustee in Prince Rupert?

If you are not sure, you can find out by calling or visiting the City of Prince Rupert, Administration Office, 424 - 3^rd Avenue West, Prince Rupert, B.C. V8J 1L7, 250.627.0939.  The office is open from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday (excluding holidays).

Advance non-resident property owner elector registrations will be accepted at the City of Prince Rupert Administration Office until August 25th, 2026. provided the person meets the following qualifications:

• 18 years of age or older on general voting day for the election or assent voting; and
• a Canadian citizen; and
• a resident of British Columbia for at least 6 months immediately before the day of registration; and
• a registered owner of real property in the City of Prince Rupert for at least 30 days immediately before the day of registration; and
• not entitled to register as a resident elector; and
• the only persons who are registered owners of the property, either as joint tenants or tenants in common, are individuals who are not holding the property in trust for a corporation or another trust; and,
• not disqualified under the Local Government Act or any other enactment from voting in an election or assent voting and not otherwise disqualified by law; and
• if there is more than one registered owner of the property, only one of those individuals may, with the written consent of the majority of the owners, register as a non-resident property elector.

Who can vote by mail?

All electors registered on the Provincial Voters list are permitted to vote by mail in the 2026 Prince Rupert General Local Election. This list was closed August 18^th, 2026. If an elector would like to check if they are registered on this list prior to applying to receive a mail ballot, call the Prince Rupert Elections Office at (250) 627 0937.

All those who qualify as an elector but are not registered on the Provincial Voters list are eligible to register to vote at the Advance and General Voting opportunities held on the following dates:

• Advance Voting is Wednesday October 7^th and Wednesday October 14^th
• General Voting Day is October 17^th 

Requesting a Mail Ballot Package

To obtain a mail ballot, you must complete a request application and submit it to the City of Prince Rupert. The request application form can be found here:

Mail Ballot Request Application 

**Note that applications MUST INCLUDE one piece of identification with a signature provided that includes residency and identity (photocopy, jpeg, png, or pdf). (For example, a Driver’s Licence, BC Services Card, BC Care Card). 

Complete the form and submit one of the following ways:

• By email to mailmyballot@princerupert.ca 
• By mail to City of Prince Rupert, 424 3^rd Avenue West, Prince Rupert, BC, V8J 1L7 
• In person at the Customer Service Desk in City Hall during office hours 9:30 am to 4:30 pm Monday to Friday or in the City Hall after hours drop slot outside the front entrance – both are located at 424 3^rd Avenue West, Prince Rupert.

Please note that once you request a mail ballot, you will not be issued another ballot for this election. 

Due dates:

Before 4:30 pm October 2^nd, 2026

• Mail ballot packages that are requested by 4:30 pm October 2^nd, 2026 will be mailed on or about October 5^th, 2026.

After 4:30 pm October 2^nd, 2026

• Mail ballot packages completed and received after 4:30 pm on October 2^nd, 2026 until 4:30 pm on October 14^th will not be mailed out and will need to be picked up from City Hall, 424 3^rd Avenue West, Prince Rupert, BC, V8J 1L7. This is to ensure that you receive your mail ballot in a timely fashion. 

Submitting your Mail Ballot

To be counted for the election, your completed ballot must be received by the Chief Election Officer no later than 8:00 pm on General Voting Day Saturday October 17^th, 2026. You can mail the completed ballot package or drop it off at City Hall between business hours of 9:30 am and 4:30 pm Monday to Friday or in the City Hall drop slot after hours. The City Hall drop slot is recommended if you will be dropping it off on Saturday, October 17^th up until 8:00 pm sharp. The cutoff to use the City Hall Drop slot is Saturday, October 17^th at 8:00 pm sharp. Any mail ballots received after 8:00 pm on October 17^th will not be counted. 

Two Advance Voting Opportunities will be held between the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.,  Wednesday, October 7th, Raven Lounge, Prince Rupert Recreation Complex , 1000 McBride Street, Prince Rupert and Wednesday, October 14th, Raven Lounge, Prince Rupert Recreation Complex , 1000 McBride Street, Prince Rupert

A Special Voting Opportunity will be held on Thursday, October 15th, 2026 for qualified electors who are staff, patients or residents at the Prince Rupert Hospital from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. and at Acropolis Manor from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. 

Elections BC is responsible for for administering the campaign financing and election advertising rules in the Local Elections Campaign Financing Act. For more information, head to: https://elections.bc.ca/local-elections/candidate-information/

Local governments oversee their own election nomination processes. Once the process and timelines for receiving nominations is confirmed, it will be shared by the City here on our website as well as through all the legislatively required channels. 

Potential candidates can contact the City's Chief Election Officer or designate to obtain a nomination package, once they are available. 

Looking for more information from those already in office that have insight and advice on the role of local government officials, how to be effective, working with others, working with First Nations, and more? Check out these external resources from the Province of BC. 

General Information:

Your one stop shop for local elections participants, is the Elections BC 2026 General Local Elections | Elections BC webpage. It is a key source of information about campaign financing rules and reporting requirements

2026 Nomination Packages for the following offices are now available at Prince Rupert City Hall:

Mayor
Councillor
School Trustee

Please contact election@princerupert.ca to arrange pick up of a package.

More detailed guidance and Information Session Options:

Local Quick Reference Sheets | Elections BC 
Local Guides | Elections BC 
Information Sessions | Elections BC 

Video Resources:

Are you a visual learner? Video resources are available interviewing existing representatives about what it means to be an effective elected official and the role:

Video Resources - the Role of Local Government Officials
Video Resources - Being an Effective Elected Official 

Campaign Financing

Elections BC has also published new e-learning modules for elector organizations, candidates, third-party advertising sponsors and financial agents to help them familiarize themselves with election financing rules. These materials can be accessed here: Online Learning | Elections BC.

Campaign Period Expense Limits

In accordance with the Local Elections Campaign Financing Act, for the 2026 general local election, the following expense limits for candidates during the campaign period apply: 

• Mayor                               $    15,901.37 
• Councillor                        $     7,950.69 
• School Trustee                $     7,982.11 

In accordance with the Local Elections Campaign Financing Act, for the 2026 general local elections, the following third party advertising limits apply: 

• Third Party Advertising Limit:  $  924.28