Yesterday, the Ministère de l’Éducation et de l’Enseignement supérieur announced the suspension of the English-language school boards elections scheduled for December 20. During this suspension, no activities may be undertaken to resume the electoral process, whether to fill seats for which no candidates had been nominated or to fill seats that may become vacant.
This decision was made to ensure that, in the context of COVID-19, school elections are conducted in a safe manner and in accordance with the moral contract proposed by the Premier of Québec for the holiday season.
This suspension applies to the eight English-language school boards that had a total of 15 seats to fill. Outgoing commissioners and chairs will remain in office until elections can be held. No date has been set for resuming the electoral process. However, given the unpredictable nature of the pandemic, the Ministère de l’Éducation et de l’Enseignement supérieur expects these elections to be postponed for several months.
Roles and responsibilities of Élections Québec
During school elections, Élections Québec provides advice to the returning officers of English-language school boards, who are responsible for organizing the elections held in their territory. Élections Québec also monitors the political financing and election expenses of candidates in these elections. In addition, it has a mandate to investigate and prosecute breaches of the law. Finally, Élections Québec is responsible for informing the public on certain aspects of voting and political financing.
