Elections New Brunswick has reconsidered plans to postpone municipal byelections until next May.
The byelections, originally scheduled for December 3, were pushed back due to the possibility of another provincial election.
But in a statement on Friday afternoon, Chief Electoral Officer Kim Poffenroth said they will now be held on December 10.
Poffenroth said the decision follows discussions with the Union of Municipalities of New Brunswick, which was concerned about several communities experiencing a loss of quorum due to council vacancies.
“I listened to the concerns raised by the union,” Poffenroth said in the statement. “My responsibility is to ensure communities have governments, municipal or provincial, that are elected and able to effectively serve their residents.”
JUST IN: Elections NB has reconsidered plans to postpone municipal byelections until next spring and will now hold them on Monday, Dec. 10.
— Brad Perry (@BradMPerry) October 19, 2018
Poffenroth said 20 municipalities have officially declared one or more council vacancies but she is also aware of two others where vacancies exist, noting she cannot schedule byelections until she receives official notification from the local council.
“Our capacity to prepare simultaneously for the municipal byelections and for a potential provincial general election remains a significant challenge to our human resources,” she said. “However, my staff is confident that we will be able to prepare for these municipal byelections, so long as further resources are available to continue preparations for an unscheduled provincial election.”
Nominations for the municipal byelections close at 2 p.m. on Friday, November 16.
(Staff photo)
