Please find the attached 2025 Municipal Election Candidate Information Package.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Nominations Open: January 1, 2025, until September 22, 2025, at 12:00 p.m.
Municipal Elections are conducted every four years, under the provision of the Local Authorities Election Act. The Town of Athabasca’s next general election is scheduled to take place Monday, October 20, 2025.
The Town of Athabasca residents will elect 1 Mayor and 6 Councillors to serve a four-year term.
Election Day
Voting will take place on October 20th, 2025 from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Voting Station will be located at:
Town of Athabasca
4705 – 49 Avenue
Athabasca, AB T9S 1B7
Phone: 780-675-2063
Please note: As a candidate, it is your responsibility to ensure that you comply with the laws governing elections and to obtain any necessary legal advice. The Local Authorities Election Act (LAEA) and the Municipal Government Act (MGA) can be accessed through the Alberta King’s Printer.
Additional information is available on-line by visiting the Alberta Municipal Affairs website at https://www.alberta.ca/municipal-elections-overview or by viewing the Local Authorities Election Act at https://www.qp.alberta.ca/documents/Acts/L21.pdf
For more information please contact:
Jeff Dalley, Returning Officer
Town of Athabasca
Telephone: 780-675-2063
Email: finance@athabasca.ca
ELIGIBILITY
Nominator Eligibility
For a candidate’s nomination to be valid, the candidate must complete the prescribed Nomination Paper and have five eligible voters sign his or her Nomination Paper. The candidate is encouraged, however, to seek more than five in case a nominator becomes disqualified.
Nominators must be:
(a) eligible to vote in this election, and
(b) residents of the Town of Athabasca on the date they signed the form Candidate Eligibility
Candidate Eligibility
Candidates must be:
(a) eligible to vote in this election,
(b) a resident of the Town of Athabasca for the 6 consecutive months immediately preceding nomination day, and
(c) not otherwise ineligible or disqualified.
Ineligibility
A person is not eligible to be nominated as a candidate in any election under this Act if on nomination day if:
(a) the person is the auditor of the Town of Athabasca;
(b) the person is an employee of the Town of Athabasca unless the person takes a leave of absence;
(c) the person is indebted to the Town of Athabasca for taxes in default exceeding $50, excluding current taxes;
(d) the person is indebted to the Town of Athabasca for any debt equaling or exceeding $500 and in default for more than 90 days;
(e) the person has, within the previous 10 years, been convicted of an offence under this Local Authorities Elections Act, the Election Act, the Election Finances and Contributions Disclosure Act or the Canada Elections Act (Canada).
A person is not eligible to be nominated for more than one office.
Please note: This section is a summary of sections 21, 22 and 23 in the Local Authorities Election Act. Please refer to this section for more details on eligibility. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are eligible to be nominated.
NOMINATION GUIDE
Nomination Checklist
1. Notice of Intent – to be filed and accepted before accepting campaign contributions
2. Nomination Deposit of $100
3. Nomination Paper and Candidate Acceptance Form
4. Candidate Financial Information Form – to be filed with Nomination Paper and Candidate Acceptance Form
5. Campaign Disclosure Statement and Financial Statement Form – to be filed on or before March 1 of each year for the previous year
Notice of Intent
Individuals who plan to run in the 2025 Town of Athabasca Municipal Election must submit a Notice of Intent to Run, and that notice must be accepted by the Returning Officer and added to the Town’s Register of Candidates before accepting campaign contributions or incurring any campaign expenses.
After January 1, 2025, candidates can submit their nomination forms and notice of intent at the same time.
Please note that submitting a Notice of Intent to Run does not replace the nomination process. Submitting a Notice of Intent does not mean the person is nominated.
Register of Candidates
The Candidate Registration list is made public and posted on the Town of Athabasca’s website.
Filing of Nomination Papers
Nomination Papers MUST be filed on or before Nomination day – Monday, September 22, 2025. The Returning Officer will receive each candidate’s originally signed Nomination Paper from January 1, 2025, until September 22, 2025 at noon at the Town of Athabasca Council Chambers, 4705 – 49 Avenue, Athabasca AB.
Faxed or emailed nomination papers will NOT be accepted.
Nomination Deposit
Nomination Deposits of $100 (paid by cash, certified cheque, money order, credit card, or debit card) must accompany a Candidates Nomination Paper. This deposit shall be held by the Town in keeping with the terms outlined in Bylaw 012- 2024 and the appropriate sections of the Local Authorities Election Act.
Deposits shall be returned to the candidate if:
a) The candidate is declared elected
b) The candidate obtains at least one-half the number of votes of the person elected to office with the least number of votes, or
c) The candidate withdraws within 24-hours of the close of nominations in accordance with Section 32 of the Local Authorities Election Act.
Please ensure that your Nomination Papers are appropriately completed with all information. If the candidate will not be personally present to file the Nomination, the Acceptance Section must be duly signed by the candidate and a Commissioner for Oaths. If the candidate will be personally present to file the Nomination, the acceptance portion may be completed at that time.
Withdrawal of Nomination Papers
If more than the required number of candidates for any particular office are nominated, you may, within 24 hours of the close of nominations (i.e. – before 12 noon on Monday, September 22, 2025) withdraw your name as a candidate by submitting a notice of withdrawal in writing to the Returning officer. A faxed or emailed notice of withdrawal will not be accepted.
Your nomination cannot be withdrawn after the 24-hour deadline has passed and your name will appear on the ballot if you withdraw after the 24-hour period.
Positions
Nominations are being sought for the following positions:
| Mayor | 01 |
| Councillor | 06 |
ELECTION FINANCES
Please note: Candidates are responsible for ensuring that their campaign complies with the Local Authorities Election Act (LAEA). This information is not a replacement for consulting the actual legislation or for obtaining legal advice.
Campaign Period
The campaign period for the 2025 Municipal Election is October 31, 2024, to December 31, 2025.
Candidate Requirements
On or before March 1 of each year, all Candidates are required to complete Form 26 (Campaign Disclosure Statement and Financial Statement) for the previous calendar year if the candidate accepted contributions or incurred expenses in that year.
A candidate may borrow money only from a financial institution and shall record all loans and their terms and shall report accordingly to the relevant local jurisdiction.
The amendments to the LAEA now require candidate financial disclosures to be available on the Town of Athabasca’s website in perpetuity.
Candidates shall ensure that:
(a) a campaign account in the name of the candidate or the candidate’s election campaign is opened at a financial institution for the purposes of the election campaign at the time the candidate gives a written notice under section 147.22 or as soon as possible after the total amount of contributions first exceeds $1000 in the aggregate,
(b) if a campaign account has been opened, all contributions of money are deposited into the campaign account,
(c) money in the campaign account shall only be used for the payment of campaign expenses,
(d) contributions of real property, personal property and services are valued,
(e) receipts are issued for every contribution and obtained for every expense,
(f) records are kept of contributions and campaign expenses and are retained by the candidate for a period of 3 years following the day of the election to which they relate, and
(g) proper direction is given to the candidate’s official agent and any other person who is authorized to incur campaign expenses and accept or solicit contributions on behalf of the candidate.
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF MUNICIPAL OFFICIALS
The council is the governing body of the municipal corporation and the custodian of its powers, both legislative and administrative. The Municipal Government Act provides that councils can only exercise the powers of the municipal corporation in the proper form, either by bylaw or resolution.
A councilor's job is to work with other council members to set the overall direction of the municipality through their role as a policy maker. The policies that council sets are the guidelines for administration to follow as it does the job of running a municipality. A councillor will spend a lot of time while on council creating new policies and programs or reviewing the current ones to make sure they are working as they should.
The Councilors
Under the Municipal Government Act, councillors have the following duties:
• To consider the welfare and interests of the municipality as a whole and, to bring to council's attention anything that would promote the welfare or interests of the municipality
• To participate generally in developing and evaluating the policies and programs of the municipality
• To participate in council meetings (the first and third Tuesday of each month at 6:00 p.m.) and council committee meetings and meetings of other bodies to which they are appointed by the council
• To obtain information about the operation or administration of the municipality from the chief administrative officer
• To keep in confidence matters discussed in private at a council meeting until discussed at a meeting held in public
• To perform any other duty or function imposed on councilors by this or any other enactment or by the council.
A councilor is elected to look after the interests of the entire municipality. A councilor who is in a municipality that has wards must be careful not to place the interest of the ward or electoral district above the interest of the whole municipality. As tough as it may be at times, the councilor must base any decision on what is best for the entire municipality. Council's effectiveness depends on councilors providing input on their areas while thinking and voting for the whole municipality. Councilors also must make certain that they do not put themselves in a conflict-of-interest situation. They must ensure that decisions made do not benefit them, their immediate family, or their friends.
The Chief Elected Official (CEO): Mayor, Reeve or I.D. Chairperson
The CEO, in addition to performing a councilor's duties, must preside when attending a council meeting, unless a bylaw provides otherwise. The CEO must also perform any other duty imposed under the MGA or any other enactment. In practice, the CEO is also generally the main spokesperson for the municipality, unless that duty is delegated to another councillor. The title CEO may be changed to one that council feels is appropriate to the office, such as mayor, reeve, or I.D. chairperson.
The CEO of a city or town is elected by a vote of a municipality's electors, unless the council passes a bylaw requiring council to appoint the CEO from among the councillors. In a village, summer village, or municipal district, council appoints the CEO from among the councillors unless it passes a bylaw providing that the official is to be elected by a vote of the municipality's electors. The CEO role, unless a bylaw prescribes otherwise, includes:
• Chairperson of council
• Consensus seeker amongst members of council
• Liaison with senior elected officials
• Ex officio member on various boards and committees
• Key representative with regard to ceremonial responsibilities
• Liaison with other levels of government
• Advice with regard to policy development
A deputy CEO will assume this role if the CEO is not available.
To learn more about elected officials please visit the websites for the:
Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA) - Deals with issues and services for urban municipalities
Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties (AAMDC) - Deals with issues and services for rural municipalities
The Chief Administrative Officer (CAO)
Every council must establish, by bylaw, a position of CAO. The council may give the position an appropriate title, such as Town Manager or Administrator. The CAO is the administrative head of the municipality. The CAO's responsibilities include ensuring that the municipality's policies and programs are implemented, advising and informing the council on the operation of the municipality, performing other duties assigned by the council, and ensuring appropriate staffing is in place.
Staying out of the day-to-day operation of the municipality allows councillors to concentrate on policy making and program monitoring. Councillors should work with the CAO to keep informed on what the municipality is doing and will depend on the administration to provide information so that they can make sound decisions.
A performance appraisal system for the CAO is a key building block for a lasting and positive relationship between council and the CAO. Section 205.1 of the Municipal Government Act states that a council must provide the CAO with an annual written performance evaluation.
Designated Officers
A CAO may delegate any of his or her powers, duties, or functions to a designated officer or to another employee. Designated officer positions are established by bylaw and are subject to the CAO's supervision, unless otherwise provided by bylaw. A designated officer may also further delegate to an employee of the municipality any of those powers, duties, or functions.
For more information on Pecuniary and Conflict or Interest for Councillors, please click here.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Can I look at nomination papers on Nomination Day?
At any time after the commencement of the nomination period until the term of office to which the filed nomination papers relate has expired, a person may request to examine the filed nomination papers during regular business hours and in the presence of the returning officer, deputy or secretary (s.28(6) Local Authorities Election Act).
What happens if the nominations received meet, but do not exceed, the number of positions available?
If the number of nominations does not exceed the number of positions available, after the close of nominations, the Returning Officer will declare the candidate(s) nominated for the position elected by acclamation (s. 34, Local Authorities Election Act).
Is a person who holds the position of Volunteer Fire Chief eligible to run for municipal office in that municipality?
Yes, a person who is a volunteer chief, officer or member of a fire, ambulance or emergency measures organization established by a local jurisdiction is not ineligible to be nominated (s. 22(4)(m) Local Authorities Election Act).
I'm not around on Nomination Day between 10:00 a.m. and 12noon. Can I file my nomination papers earlier?
Completed nomination forms can be filed with the returning officer at any time beginning on January 1 in the year of the general election and until 12:00 p.m. on Nomination Day. (s. 25 Local Authorities Election Act).
What if no nominations are received for a particular position?
If the required number of nominations are not received for the number of positions available on Nomination Day, the Returning Officer will continue to receive nominations the following day, at the local jurisdiction, between 10 a.m. and 12 noon. Nominations will continue to be received at the same place between the same times until the required number of nominations has been received or a period of six working days, including Nomination Day (s. 31 Local Authorities Election Act).
Are there limits to how much someone can contribute during an election?
Yes, please refer to Section 147.2 of the Local Authorities Elections Act for a full list of limitations on contributions.