Backgrounders

Elections Canada: General Information: Backgrounders

Important Considerations for Prospective Candidates This publication gives prospective candidates an overview of the procedures for official nomination, and their responsibilities and duties during federal elections. For more detailed information, please see the Canada Elections Act and Elections Canada's Election Handbook for Candidates, Their Official Agents and Auditors (EC 20190). Eligibility The right to be a candidate in a federal election is protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The procedures and responsibilities are spelled out in the Canada Elections Act. Unless specifically declared to be ineligible under section 65 of the Canada Elections Act, any person qualified as an elector may run for election. That is, a prospective candidate must be a Canadian citizen who is at least 18 years of age on election day. A candidate may seek election in only one riding at a time; however, the candidate need not be a registered elector or even reside in that riding. (A riding is also known as a constituency or electoral district.) Nomination procedures A candidate's first official duty is to appoint an official agent and an auditor. The official agent must be appointed before the campaign accepts a contribution or incurs an electoral campaign expense. As soon as possible after an election is called, every person who has decided to be a candidate in that election and who has chosen an official agent and an auditor must obtain the Nomination Paper (EC 20010) from the returning officer of the riding in which that person intends to be a candidate, or from Elections Canada's Web site. The nomination papers must be signed before a witness by at least 100 persons who are electors entitled to vote in the riding in which the candidate is seeking nomination. (In the case of the larger or remote ridings listed in Schedule 3 of the Act, the required minimum number of signatures is 50.) The nomination papers must then be submitted to the returning officer by the witness to the prospective candidate's sworn consent to the nomination. The papers include a witnessed declaration signed by the candidate stating that he or she accepts the nomination, statements signed by the official agent and the auditor consenting to act in those capacities, the candidate's name, permanent address and occupation, the official agent's name and permanent address, and the name, business address and occupation of the auditor. A candidate is also required to pay a deposit of $1,000. This is reimbursed if the candidate's official agent submits the candidate's election expenses returns and unused official receipts within the required time. When a candidate is endorsed by a political party and wishes to have the party's name appear under his or her name on the ballot, the nomination papers must include a letter of endorsement signed by the leader of the party (or in a general election, by his or her representative). If no such letter is filed, a candidate must indicate on the nomination papers whether he or she wishes to be designated on the ballot by the term "independent," or to have no designation appear. In a general election, a political party's name may accompany the candidate's name on the ballot only if the party is registered by the close of nominations – that is, if it complies with the administrative requirements for registration set out in sections 366 and 368 of the Act, and has applied to be registered at least 60 days before the issue of the writs. The party must have also endorsed at least one confirmed candidate. If an eligible party misses the 60-day deadline but meets all the other requirements, it may become a registered party for the next by-election or general election. The witness to the candidate's consent to the nomination must submit the nomination papers, the deposit and all related documents to the returning officer between the time that the returning officer publishes the Notice of Election and the time that the nominations close at 2:00 p.m. on Monday, the 21st day before election day. A candidate whose witness is unable to get to the office of the returning officer has the option of making other arrangements with the returning officer under subsection 70(3) of the Act to file the nomination papers, or the prospective candidate may file electronic copies of the documents by the close of nominations. For electronic filing, the returning officer must receive the deposit by the close of nominations and he or she must receive the original documents not later than 48 hours after the close of nominations. Candidates who change their minds have until 5:00 p.m. on the closing day for nominations to withdraw. After receiving the nomination papers, the returning officer has 48 hours to review them and, in particular, to confirm that the nominating electors are electors entitled to vote in that riding. To ensure a smooth and speedy nomination process, Elections Canada encourages prospective candidates to accommodate the returning officer's review by taking the following precautions when preparing their nomination papers: File as early as possible, so that there is sufficient time to correct the nomination papers if the returning officer finds they are incomplete.   Make sure that the names and addresses of nominating electors are as legible, complete and clear as possible. This will help speed up the verification process and allow the returning officer to confirm the candidate's nomination quickly.   Provide more than the required number of signatures, so that if there are difficulties in confirming the qualifications of some electors, there will still be sufficient names to continue the process and reach the threshold of 100 (or 50, as required). You cannot provide additional signatures to the returning officer after 2:00 p.m. on Monday, the 21st day before election day. Following the review, the returning officer will accept or reject each nomination. If a nomination is rejected, a candidate may present new nomination papers up to the time that nominations close. The returning officer will review each new or corrected set of nomination papers within 48 hours. Financing Roles of the official agent and auditor The official agent is responsible for all financial aspects of the campaign. For example, the agent must receive all campaign contributions, deposit them in a designated account, and make or authorize all disbursements (except for petty expenses and the candidate's personal expenses). The agent must also keep a record of all receipts and disbursements, prepare and submit all financial reports, and sign and issue all receipts for income tax credit purposes. The auditor must examine all accounting entries, audit the candidate's election expenses return, and report on the findings of the audit. Limit on expenses One of the objectives of the Canada Elections Act is to limit candidates' election expenses to ensure a level playing field for candidates. Election expenses are expenses incurred directly to promote or oppose a registered political party, its leader or a particular candidate during an election. Expenses include amounts paid, liabilities incurred, and the commercial value of goods and services donated (other than volunteer labour) or acquired at less than commercial value, regardless of when the goods and services are acquired or paid for. The Chief Electoral Officer determines the indexed limit on allowable expenses on the basis of the number of registered electors on either the preliminary or revised voters lists for the riding where the candidacy occurs, whichever is greater. The Act provides for raising the limit in certain circumstances: For a general election, in ridings where there are fewer electors than the national average, the Act adjusts the number of electors upward.   For a by-election, if the number of electors on the lists in a riding is less than the national average in the preceding general election, the Act adjusts the number of electors upward.   Where the number of electors on the lists in a riding is less than 10 per square kilometre, the base amount is increased.   If an election is postponed following the death of a candidate endorsed by a registered party, all candidates at the postponed election are entitled to election expenses limits equal to 1½ times the amount normally stipulated. Payment of expenses Only the candidate and the candidate's official agent may pay the candidate's personal expenses. At the end of the campaign the candidate must provide the official agent with a statement of personal expenses. Other campaign-related expenses may only be paid by the candidate's official agent, except for expenses paid out of a petty cash fund by persons authorized in writing by the official agent. Contributions The candidate and the official agent are required to comply with the provisions about prohibited contribution sources. They can only accept contributions from: individuals who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada   corporations as defined in subsection 404.1(2) that carry on business in Canada, other than Crown corporations or corporations that receive more than 50% of their funding from the federal government   trade unions that hold bargaining rights for employees in Canada   "unincorporated associations" that raise money from eligible individual contributors for that purpose It is illegal for anyone (including a company or other organization) to solicit or accept a contribution on behalf of a registered party, registered association or candidate if the person or entity made a representation to the contributor or potential contributor that all or any part of the contribution would be transferred to a person or entity other than the registered party, a candidate, leadership contestant or electoral district association. It is also illegal for anyone to collude with someone else (including a company or other organization) to circumvent this prohibition. Official tax receipts Once a candidate's nomination is confirmed, the returning officer will provide the official agent, on request, with pre-numbered official tax receipts. The agent may issue a receipt for each monetary contribution received in the period starting with the day on which the candidate's nomination is confirmed by the returning officer and continuing for the rest of the election period. The official agent is entirely responsible for issuing proper receipts under the Income Tax Act. Records and returns The official agent is required to keep a record of all contributions received and of all expenses incurred so they may be verified by the candidate's auditor. The official agent must: retain this record for at least seven years after the end of the year in which the election is held   file with the Canada Revenue Agency a report of all contributions received and all official receipts issued   file a return with Elections Canada, disclosing all contributions received and all election expenses incurred, using the forms prescribed by the Chief Electoral Officer Reimbursements If a candidate is elected or receives at least 10% of the valid votes cast in his or her riding at an election, shortly after the return of the writs the Chief Electoral Officer will authorize the Receiver General to send the candidate's official agent (or a designate) an interim reimbursement of 15% of the expenses limit for that riding. The candidate's official agent must return to the Receiver General any amount received that is more than 60% of the total of the personal expenses paid by the candidate and the candidate's election expenses that have been paid by the official agent as set out in the candidate's electoral campaign return. If the official agent and candidate also comply with all the post-election requirements of the Canada Elections Act, the official agent (or a designate) will receive a second instalment, which represents a reimbursement of 60% of actual election and personal expenses paid, minus the amount he or she has already received, to a maximum of 60% of the election expenses limit for the riding. A candidate is reimbursed the full amount of his or her $1,000 deposit if the official agent returned any unused official tax receipts to the returning officer within a month after election day, and submitted the required reports and other related documents required by the Act, within the time prescribed. Offences and penalties A person found guilty of an infraction of an offence provision of the Canada Elections Act may be subject to a fine and to a period of imprisonment, as provided for in the Act. The Act defines some offences as "corrupt practices" or "illegal practices." For these specified offences, penalties will include, in addition to any other sentence, loss of the right to be a candidate for a period of five or seven years. One example of an illegal practice under the Act is the case of a candidate, an official agent or any person authorized by a candidate who wilfully exceeds the allowable limit for election expenses. Since candidates can be held liable for some actions taken by their workers and agents, candidates and their official agents must use extreme caution when delegating their responsibilities and authority. For more information, please contact: Elections Canada 257 Slater Street Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0M6 Telephone 1 800 463-6868 toll-free in Canada and the United States 001 800 514-6868 toll-free in Mexico (613) 993-2975 from anywhere in the world For people who are deaf or hard of hearing: TTY 1 800 361-8935 toll-free in Canada and the United States Fax (613) 954-8584 1 888 524-1444 toll-free in Canada and the United States This publication is available in alternative formats. September 2005