Elementary PowerPoint 3: - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

Elementary PowerPoint 3:

Municipal ElectionsSlide2

Opening Discussion

Have you ever voted for something before?

How was the winner decided?

Did you think the process was fair? Slide3

Elections

Elections are contests of leadership, ideas, power and politics.

An

electoral system

or voting system

is the method of choosing our

politicians. Voting systems differ based on

the way candidates are

presented on a ballot and

the process for

determining who wins. Slide4

First-Past-the-Post

First-Past-The-Post (FPTP)

is the voting system currently used across Canada and for municipal and school board elections in Nova Scotia.

The winning candidate must

receive the most

votes.Slide5

Example of First-Past-The-Post

CANDIDATE

NUMBER OF VOTES

Thomas 340 Lisa 401 Mohamed 155

Emma 191Question:

Only one candidate is elected in the race. Which candidate is the winner?Slide6

The Municipal Election Process

Chair of the Council

:

Mayors

are all elected at-large (by all voters in the municipality).

Wardens are chosen after the

election by the elected councillors. They select someone from the group to take on the role.

Question

: Does

your municipality have a mayor or a warden?Slide7

The Municipal Election Process

Councillors

:

E

lected at-large or by a district or ward

system.In a district system, the municipality is broken down into smaller geographic areas that vote for their own representatives.

Some municipalities use a mix of district and at-large systems.Questions

: How many

councillors

are elected in your municipality? How are they elected?Slide8

One Member or Multiple Members

In

single-member races

, only one candidate is elected.

For example, an election for mayor or a council race where only one person is selected to represent one district/ward.

In multi-member races, voters elect more than one representative. For example, six councillors may be elected at-large for the entire community. Another example is where two councillors are elected per district.

Under each election type, voters mark their ballots for as many candidates as there are seats up for contest (i.e., six choices if six candidates are elected at-large). Slide9

Candidates

A

candidate

is an individual who competes for the job of elected representative.

Candidates campaign during elections to share their ideas and try to convince

community members to vote for them.There

are no political parties (i.e., Liberals, NDP) at the municipal level in Nova Scotia.

The

council candidates

still have

campaign strategies and a list of goals for the community, but they work as independent politicians.Slide10

Discussion

Would you ever be a candidate and run for election?

How would you share your message and convince others to vote for you?

How can you find out more about how the council is elected in your community?Slide11

How does someone run for election?

In order to run as a

candidate

in the municipal election

in Nova Scotia, you must: Have turned 18 years of

age;Have been living in the municipality

for at least six months;All

money and

taxes owing to the municipality

have been paid;

Not disqualified under the Municipal Elections Act.Slide12

Getting to know the Candidates

There are many ways to learn about your local candidates:

Traditional media sources (radio, TV, newspaper and magazines)

Social media (websites, Twitter, Facebook)

Candidate debates or town hall

meetingsCampaign offices and events, door-to-door canvassing

Discussion with family and friendsSlide13

Final Thoughts

How should you

compare and evaluate

candidates?

What qualities and skills do you expect from politicians?

What local issues are important to you?What else do you want to know or research before making your decision?