A two-way race is shaping up in Grand Forks’ December byelection, Chief Election Officer Patti Ferguson confirmed shortly after Friday’s 4 p.m. nomination cut-off.
City residents Everett Baker and Ian Mitchell registered their candidacies at city hall Tuesday, Oct. 27 and Thursday, Oct. 29. Byelection candidates are allowed to withdraw before ahead of the election, Ferguson qualified.
READ MORE: Baker files nomination ahead of Grand Forks byelection
READ MORE: Mitchell joins Grand Forks’ byelection race
The City of Grand Forks is meanwhile arranging polling stations at locations that can accommodate social-distancing guidelines prescribed by Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry. Voters will have to cast their ballots in-person because City bylaws don’t currently allow for mail-in balloting in municipal elections, Ferguson explained.
Citing the Local Government Act, Ferguson said mail-in balloting could happen ahead of Grand Forks’ 2022 mayoral election if the bylaw is changed 42 days before the nomination period.
City voters head to the polls Saturday, Dec. 5.
The winner will fill the council seat vacated by Councillor Rod Zielinski, who resigned to become city hall’s utilities manager in August.
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