Vote in the BC Referendum on Electoral Reform

As part of a campaign promise made by the governing BC NDP and BC Green parties, a mail-in referendum is being held on whether to change from BC's current "first past the post" electoral system. The proposed change is to a proportional representation system where the final number of seats a party receives corresponds with their popular vote across the province. The referendum is comprised of two questions:

  1. The first question asks if we should keep the current First Past the Post voting system or move to a system of proportional representation.
  2. The second question asks voters to rank three proportional systems: Dual Member Proportional (DMP), Mixed Member Proportional (MMP), and Rural-Urban Proportional (RUP).

All of the three proposed systems include: direct election of representatives in ridings, a way to balance out the total numbers to get proportional results, and protections to reduce the possibility of fringe extremist parties getting seats. Proportional representation type electoral systems are used in more than 80 countries, including Australia, Argentina, Germany, and Ireland. More information is available at:

Who can vote and how to register:

Register to vote in the referendum here. You can vote if you are:

Important dates:

 

Nominations for Fall 2018 Executive Positions Open!

Looking to become more involved with your union? Consider running for an Executive position! Nominations for the Fall 2018 election cycle are currently being accepted for the positions of Chief Steward I, Coordinator, Chair, Membership Mobilization Committee (MMC) Commissioner, Occupational Health & Safety Committee (OH&S) Commissioner, and Trustee I. All positions are open to any member in good standing and training is provided. Nominations close at the end of the October 16, 2018 General Membership Meeting.

Please see the Fall 2018 Elections Information and the Fall 2018 Nomination Form for more information.

Please contact trustees@tssu.ca if you have any questions!

Municipal Election Endorsements in Burnaby, Surrey & Vancouver

At the first General Membership Meeting of the Fall semester on September 19th, a packed house of TSSU members voted to endorse candidates for municipal offices in Burnaby, Surrey, and Vancouver. Local elections across BC will be held on Saturday, October 20th. You can find a complete list of candidates for all jurisdictions here.

In Burnaby, TSSU endorses independent candidate Mike Hurley for Mayor.

In Surrey, TSSU endorses Proudly Surrey candidate Stuart Parker for City Council.

In Vancouver, TSSU endorses the entire Coalition of Progressive Electors (COPE) slate of candidates: Derrick O'Keefe, Anne Roberts, and Jean Swanson for City Council; Diana Day and Barb Parrott for School Board; and Gwen Giesbrecht and John Irwin for Parks Board.

To vote in Burnaby, you must be 18 years of age or older on election day; be a Canadian citizen; have lived in BC for at least 6 months immediately before registering to vote or on the voting day; have lived in Vancouver for at least 30 days before registering to vote or on the voting day; and not be disqualified by law from voting. Voting locations and advanced voting days can be found here. You can find out how to register to vote here; and what identification to bring with you if you are or are not registered, what accessible voting options are available, or what to do if you have only one acceptable identifying document here.

To vote in Surrey, you must be registered as a resident elector of Surrey; 18 years of age or older on election day; be a Canadian citizen; have lived in BC for at least 6 months immediately before registering to vote; have lived in Surrey for at least 30 days immediately before registering to vote; and not be disqualified by law from voting. Voting locations can be found here and advanced voting days here. You can find out how to register to vote here, what identification to bring with you if you are or are not registered here, and what accessible voting options are available here.

To vote in Vancouver, you must be 18 years of age or older on election day; be a Canadian citizen; have lived in BC for at least 6 months immediately before registering to vote; have lived in Vancouver or own property registered in your name in Vancouver for at least 30 days immediately before registering to vote; and not be disqualified by law from voting. Voting locations and advanced voting days can be found here. You can find out how to register to vote here; and what identification to bring with you if you are or are not registered, what to do if you have only one acceptable identifying document, or how to vote if you have no fixed address here. Information about accessible voting options are available here.

You can also find information about local elections and how to vote in Abbotsford, Coquitlam, Delta, Langley (City & Township), Maple Ridge, New Westminster, North Vancouver, Pitt Meadows, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Richmond, and West Vancouver at the links provided.