Irricana Town Council has set the byelection for Feb. 11, 2016, following Councillor Laura Thiessen’s letter of resignation sent to administration Nov. 23.
In an email, Thiessen, who was first elected in October 2013, stated it was due to personal reasons that she was unable to continue forward in her governing role, but also noted how great the past two years had been for her.
“I had an amazing experience on council,” Thiessen wrote. “I really learned a lot and had a great council to work with.”
The Canada Election Act requires a byelection be held within 90 days from the date Thiessen resigned and, though the holiday could allow for an extension of this, Irricana Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Geoff Stephenson still recommended the Feb. 11, 2016 date.
With that date set, nomination day is Jan. 14, 2016 and candidate packages will be made available for pickup from the Town Office sometime this week, according to Stephenson.
Finding a returning officer in the community has proved difficult, Stephenson said, noting the CAO is the secretary of the election and should not take on the role of returning officer.
“It creates a bit of a, if you will, impartiality issue,” he said.
After much searching, he said, Beiseker Deputy Mayor Al Henuset agreed to be the byelection’s returning officer.
Irricana Deputy Mayor Dennis Tracz argued the Town should hold advanced polling.
“I believe we have a duty to the town to give them every opportunity to pick a good candidate,” he said.
Mayor Valerie Squires disagreed with advanced polling, quoting the extra cost incurred, while Stephenson said advanced polling could cause availability issues with those helping with the election.
There is also the risk of nomination day needing to be extended to subsequent days, further causing availability issues, Stephenson noted.
“This is a byelection,” he said. “There is the potential risk that on nomination day we could have no candidates.”
Council voted unanimously to set the byelection date of Feb. 11, 2016 and nomination day for Jan. 14, 2016. A motion for an advance poll was defeated in a 3-1 vote with Tracz as the single vote in favour.
Thiessen, as well as resigning, requested council address her to the Community Services Board. Considering her service to council and previous community board experience, administration found no issues recommending her for the position.
Council unanimously voted to address her to the board and Thiessen commented in her email about what that means for her.
“Although I am unable to continue in my role as councillor, I still want to be involved in the community and this board is made up of a truly dedicated group of people,” she wrote. “I think we can bring some wonderful activities to the town and I’m excited to be a part of this.”
