Criteria related to the delimitation

Effective representation of electors

The division of the territory for electoral purposes must respect a basic democratic principle: the effective representation of electors. The Supreme Court of Canada recognized this principle at the beginning of the 90’s as a guaranteed right to the elector under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

The first condition of effective representation resides in a relative equality, meaning that the weight of an elector’s vote is not out of proportion in relation to the weight of another elector’s vote. However, although essential, this condition is not exclusive and some factors such as geographic characteristics, history and interests of the collectivities, for example, must be taken into consideration.

The Act respecting school elections provides for a number of rules making it possible to ensure the effective representation of electors, namely the criteria on the equality of the votes and on the natural communities.

Equality of the votes of electors

The criterion on the equality of the vote consists of regrouping an approximately equal number of electors in each electoral division of a school board. The Act specifies that the number of electors in an electoral division cannot be greater or less than 25% of the average.

A school board can establish an exceptional electoral division; however it needs special dispensation from the ±25 % criteria. The dividing of the electoral divisions will have to be submitted to the Commission de la représentation électorale for approval.

Natural communities

The second criterion aims at ensuring the greatest socio-economical homogeneity within each electoral division in relation with the natural communities present.  To do so, the Act specifies examples of elements to consider such as the location of educational institutions of the school board, physical barriers, demographic trends, municipality boundaries, the adjacency of the territories, the area of the school board and distance.