Qalipu Chief and Council would like to announce to its members that the position of Electoral Officer has been appointed to Carol Lahey. In this role, Carol will administer the upcoming Band Election for Fall 2021 in accordance with the Custom Rules Governing the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band Elections.

Carol Lahey was a Deputy Electoral Officer in both 2012 and 2015 elections and was then appointed Electoral Officer during the last election in 2018. She has become very proficient in her understanding of the Qalipu election process, rules, and procedures. Lahey also brings with her experience working in both provincial and federal elections.

We look forward to another successful election in 2021.

To reach Carol, please email clahey@qalipu.ca or call 709-630-7678

Find a copy of the Election Code here: Election Code

Voters will receive an information package in the mail containing a secure PIN that they will use to vote either online or over the phone:

Question: What can I do to make sure I receive my voter information package in the mail?

Answer: We need your correct mailing address. Please register your current information by completing the Voter Registration Form or by updating your Ginu membership profile on your own

The Band holds an Election for Chief and Council every three years.

In the past, voters have requested mail-in ballots or voted at polling stations in each of the nine Wards.

During the 2018 election, Qalipu held a referendum vote to amend the Election Code.  75% of voters voted in favour of changing the way we hold elections; instead of mail-in ballots and polling stations, voters will now be asked to vote online or over the phone.

Find a copy of the Election Code here: https://qalipu.ca/qalipu-election-2021/#1611931747908-9b71716b-5ba6

Going forward, voters will receive an information package in the mail containing a secure PIN that they will use to vote either online or over the phone.

We will not be able to reach voters who do not have a current mailing address listed on their ginu membership profile.  However, these individuals will have the opportunity to dial a toll-free number and obtain a PIN after verifying their membership identity once the Election has been called.

Question: What can I do to make sure I receive my voter information package in the mail?

Answer: We need your correct mailing address.  Please register your current information by completing the  Voter Registration Form or by updating your ginu membership profile on your own.

Question: When is the Election?

Answer: A call for nominations will take place in early September 2021.   Voting will take place over the course of a seven-day window leading up to end of voting and announcement of winners on October 22.

Question: Who is eligible to vote in the upcoming Election?

Answer: Every Band member who is age 18 + at the date of the election is eligible to vote regardless of their location.

Question: Who will we be voting for during the Election?

Answer: The positions of Chief, Western Vice Chief, Central Vice Chief and Ward Councilors for each of the nine Wards (Flat Bay, St. George’s, Stephenville, Port au Port, Corner Brook, Benoit’s Cove, Grand Falls-Windsor, Glenwood, and Gander Bay).

Question: Can I vote on all of these?

Answer: Voters will vote on the positions of Chief, Vice Chief for their region only, and Ward Councilor for their Ward only.

Question: If I do not live in a Ward, will I still be able to vote for a Ward Councilor?

Answer: If the voter does not live in a Ward community, they will have the opportunity to vote in the last Ward community in which they lived.  If the voter has never lived in a Ward community, we will look at substantive community connection to determine your voting Ward.  In most cases, this has been previously determined by data provided during the application process.  For a small number of others who were more recently accepted into the Band, we will ask about your community connection, or the community to which you tie your Mi’kmaq ancestry in order to determine your substantive community connection.

Question: Can I vote at a polling station or request a mail-in-ballot?

Answer: no, voting will be done using a secure PIN that will be sent to you in the mail.  You will then have a seven-day window in which to vote online or over the phone.

Question: Why am I expected to vote this way? Why did things change?

Answer: During the 2018 election, Qalipu held a referendum vote to amend the Election Code.  75% of voters voted in favour of changing the way we hold elections; instead of mail-in ballots and polling stations, voters will now be asked to vote online or over the phone.

Question: What if I have trouble voting online or over the phone? Will there be help available?

Answer: Yes, there will be a toll-free support line you can contact for assistance.  We also expect that the Electoral Officer may put people in place for in-person support at our Band office locations.

If you have additional questions, please email them to communications@qalipu.ca

It has come to our attention that some members are confused about the process for completing their mail-in ballot.  Please see below for a copy of the instructions that were sent out, with additional information added in red.  We hope this helps! Please let us know if you have any other issues.

20.5 (1)          On receipt of the mail in ballot, the Elector shall mark the ballot with a pen or pencil or any color within the space on the mail in ballot containing the name of the candidate for whom he or she intends to vote.

(2)       After marking the mail in ballot, the Elector shall

(a)   place the marked ballot in an envelope marked “BALLOT”;

(b)    seal the envelope marked “BALLOT”;

(c)   place the envelope marked “BALLOT” in an envelope marked “DECLARATION ENVELOPE”   and containing the following words on the face of the envelope:

I, _________________________________________, hereby declare that this envelope contains a mail in ballot that I have marked.

____________________________________
Signed

(d)   Complete all sections on face of envelope marked “DECLARATION ENVELOPE”. (print your name, sign your name, fill in your band registration number (the ten-digit number, starting with 034, found on your Secure Certificate of Indian Status) and your Ward)

(e)   seal the envelope marked “DECLARATION ENVELOPE” and place it in the return envelope; and

(f)   seal the envelope and mail or deliver it to the Electoral Officer.

20.6    All mail in ballots must be received by the Electoral Officer no later than 4:00 p.m. on the day preceding the day before the polling day or otherwise will not be counted.   This means the Electoral Officer must have your ballot received by 4:00 pm on Sunday, October 21^st, 2018.

20.7       Your mail-in ballot package includes the Amendment Vote question “Do you agree with the changes to the Custom Rules Governing Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band Elections?” and you are asked to mark Yes or No.  For more information on what this means, please visit our website (www.qalipu.ca).  Under the tab marked “Election 2018” you will see “Amendment Vote” which contains a complete copy of the amended custom rules, and a summary and Q & A of what the changes mean.

If you intend to vote by mail-in ballot in the upcoming election, request your ballot now!

The latest date by which you can request the ballot is October 9, and you must have your ballot mailed back and received by the Electoral Officer by 4:00 PM on October 21 in order to have your vote counted.

We have made it easier than ever to request your mail-in ballot. Simply click this link to access the application, complete all the required fields and then click send. Your mail-in ballot will then arrive in the mail at the address you have provided.

For more on the Qalipu Election 2018, including details on the Amendment Vote, Polling Locations and Candidates, please visit our website www.qalipu.ca and explore the menu item called “Election 2018”.

We wish to advise our members that the Qalipu Chief and Council have appointed Carol Lahey to the position of Electoral Officer.  In this role, Carol will  administer the upcoming Band Election in accordance with the Custom Rules Governing the Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band Elections.

Carol Lahey was a Deputy Electoral Officer in both the 2012 and 2015 Qalipu elections, and as such has become proficient in her understanding of our election process, rules and procedure.  She also brings with her experience working in both provincial and federal elections.

We look forward to another successful election in 2018.

To reach Carol, please email election@qalipu.ca

or call 709-634-7823

The Election Office is located at:
Suite 313
93 West Street
Corner Brook, NL
A2H 2Y6

Qalipu elections are governed by a legal document called the Custom Rules Governing Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation Band Elections.  This guiding document was developed in 2011 when the Qalipu Band was recognized as an Indian Act Band.  The Custom Rules is now a codified legal document that was ratified by the people through majority vote.  For more on how our election works via the Custom Rules, please visit our website.

Following the election in 2015, Qalipu   realized several issues that need to be resolved to make our elections more effective in the future.   For instance, some voters reported arriving at their polling station to find that they had been incorrectly listed in a different voting location.  Others found that the distance they had to travel to their designated poll was unreasonable, and many people thought the time frame on returning mail-in ballots was too short.  The 2015 election also saw a low voter turnout (approximately 25%) and this is something else that can be improved upon.

An Election Reform Committee made up of three Councilors, three staff members and one deputy returning officer from the last election, was brought together to begin addressing these issues, and to explore election improvements, including changes to the Custom Rules.  It is important to note that any change to the Custom Rules requires ratification (approval by vote) from the membership.  For instance, to change voting procedure to include the option for online voting, or to make the election    entirely mail-in (no polls), a ratification vote would need to take place.  The ideal time to present changes like this for voting by membership is during the next election.

The Election Reform Committee has proposed changes to the Custom Rules, and voters can expect to hear more on those changes which will be presented to them for approval during the next election.  Membership will also be asked for their input via a survey that will be placed on our website, and sent out to the Elders Mailout list.  Hard copies of the survey will also be made available at our office locations and at Ward meetings.  The intent of the survey will be to determine membership preference on how they would like to vote; online only, mail-in only, a combination of both, or maintain the current way of voting, for instance.

Can our elections be improved before the membership votes on it?

Yes.  While major changes to the Custom Rules require ratification votes, there are efficiencies that the Committee has found that fit within the parameters of the current rules and, by implementing them, some of the issues experienced during the last election will be resolved.  For instance, the timeline of the entire election will be drawn out.  By starting the process earlier, all elements of the Election will be less rushed.  This will include making mail-in ballot applications available sooner and giving voters more time to get them in.

The Committee will also communicate often, well in advance of the Election itself, to ensure that voters are engaged and aware of the process.

As a voter, you can help make the Election run more smoothly as well.

By logging into your ginu membership profile, you can confirm that you are listed in the correct Electoral Ward.  The Ward listed under “Electoral Ward” under the Mailing Address tab determines where you will be eligible to vote.  Other information that you should verify includes: ensure a valid email address is listed for you (most of our communications, both during elections and throughout the year, come through email); and, ensure your current mailing address and phone number are listed.

Why not take a look to ensure that the information on your profile is accurate? If you need help logging in to ginu, please call Charmaine Bath at 1-855-263-6440.

Questions or comments? Please email the committee through the Communications Officer at awhite@qalipu.ca