It’s an election year, but voting procedures in Armstrong will remain the same.
The city’s finance and administration committee had been pondering possible changes to the city’s elections procedure bylaw.
“We talked about things like voting day registration rules and nomination deposits,” said Coun. John Trainor, committee chairperson. “But what we’re saying is, we want to stay with the bylaw as written.”
Things like voting day registration, advance voting chances, special voting opportunities (available to residents or patients of a health care facility) and mail ballot voting.
In the event of a tie vote after a judicial recount is held, the city bylaw states the vote is determined “by lot.”
The city then has two options.
“You take the people who are tied, put their names in a hat and draw a name, or you have a run-off election,” said administrator Melinda Stickney. If a run-off election was to be held to determine a winner, it would include all of the candidates, and not just the people who are tied. No new candidates would be allowed to enter.
The committee also considered a deposit of not more than $100 be required to accompany nomination submissions, and also debated changing the order of names on the ballot, which, currently are listed alphabetically.
However, neither will be implemented for this year’s municipal vote which is slated for Saturday, Nov. 15.
Deputy corporate officer Natalie Garbay was appointed chief election officer while Stickney and Wendy Wallin were named deputy chief officers for the election.
