Lutsel K'e voted as a community to back their local candidate in the Northwest Territories election on Monday, residents say.
The move, a first for the community of about 320, located 185 kilometres southeast of Yellowknife, was an effort to elect the candidate of their choice, Steve Ellis, as the MLA in the Tu Nedhe district. The vast majority of ballots in the community were marked for Ellis, although official numbers are not yet available.
Resident John Catholique told CBC News that they had hoped the vote in the larger community of Fort Resolution would be split among the other five candidates running.
Voting is a discouraging process for those in small towns, he said.
"Smaller communities have, you know, a disadvantage … population-wise. If you want to put somebody into the legislative assembly, you pretty well have to run one candidate," Catholique said.
"You have a better chance, as [Fort Resolution] would be running four or five, so there's a good chance that there'd be like a split vote and stuff. There's always that possibility, so that's one of the things that we decided to do. Small communities, the way it's set up, it's a disadvantage."
Despite anecdotal reports of high voter turnout in Lutsel K'e, Ellis came in second with 38 per cent of the vote. Tom Beaulieu, a former Fort Resolution town councillor and territorial deputy minister, won the seat with nearly 53 per cent.
Ellis was born in Prince Edward Island, but moved north in 1999. He has most recently worked with the Akaitcho Dene First Nations, based mainly in Lutsel K'e.
Coming in third in Tu Nedhe was Raymond Simon, with six per cent of the vote, followed by incumbent Bobby Villeneuve with less than three per cent. Candidates Andrew Butler and James McPherson rounded out the race with about one per cent of the vote each.
Elections N.W.T. officials unofficially pegged voter turnout across the territory at 66.75 per cent. Nearly 10 per cent of voters, or about 2,200 people, took advantage of advance polls, mobile polls and special ballots before election day.
Catholique said it is difficult for people living outside of their communities, such as college students, to vote in territorial elections. He suggested special polling stations should be set up for such voters to cast a ballot that could be counted in their home districts.
N.W.T Votes 2007 »
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