This article originally appeared in
Focus on Real Estate - November 2010
On October 25, 2010, Ontarians went to the polls to elect their
civic officials, including Councillors, School Trustees and Mayors.
Although the elections are now over, fundraising activities can
still continue well into 2011.
Bill 212, entitled the Good Government Act, came into
force and effect on December 15, 2009. Bill 212 made some important
changes to the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, which are
discussed in this article.
The first major changes relate to the dates of Nomination Day
and Voting Day:
- Prior to the amendments, Voting Day was the 2nd Monday in
November. Now, Voting Day has been moved up by a few weeks, to the
4th Monday in October (i.e. this year, October 25th). The biggest
impact of this change is the significant hiatus of Council and
Committee meetings. For instance, in the City of Toronto, the last
Council meeting prior to the election was on August 25th‐
27th (for
