Manitoba school board elections uncontested in some rural areas due to lack of candidates
The race for the position of school trustee in some parts of rural Manitoba is not much of a competition at all.
A lack of candidates seeking election in some divisions means those who did put their name forward have been acclaimed into the job while in some other cases vacant seats will have to be filled by appointees.
It’s a stark difference compared to some of the races taking place in school divisions within Winnipeg where the slate of candidates means voters will get to choose who they want for the job.
In and around the town of Lorette, Man. election signs for mayor and council pop out to passers-by but area resident Ken Siwak hasn’t seen very many for candidates running for the elected position of school trustee.
“I guess they’re not interested. I guess if people want their say, run for the position,” Siwak said.
In two of three wards in the Seine River School Division where Siwak votes, five candidates have been acclaimed because there’s no one else running against them, while one seat has been left vacant.
In the third ward, six candidates are running for three available school trustee seats.
“I think it’s somewhat concerning but it’s actually not surprising,” said John Wiens, Dean Emeritus in the University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Education.
Wiens said while vacancies and acclamations aren’t unheard of in school trustee elections, the numbers this year in rural areas are difficult to ignore.
It comes in the aftermath of the controversy surrounding Bill 64, which under former Premier Brian Pallister proposed to eliminate the role of school trustees, before Manitoba’s Progressive Conservative government withdrew the bill after Pallister stepped down amid backlash across the province.
“I think people like to, particularly if they’re stepping into something for the first time, they would like to have something that’s somewhat established and predictable and so on and I think there’s a level of unpredictability about the way things are going to happen,” Wiens said.
He’s quick to point out Bill 64 also had the opposite impact because it sparked a renewed interest in the position for some people.
Across Manitoba, 94 incumbents and 41 new trustees have been acclaimed into the position due to a lack of challengers.
That’s 47 per cent — nearly half — of the 285 available seats reported so far to the Manitoba School Boards Association but is comparable to the last election in 2018.
A total of 13 boards have been wholly elected under acclamation, about double the number compared to 2018 but not far off the 11 boards that were wholly elected under acclamation in 2010.
In the Hanover School Division southeast of Winnipeg, three of nine available seats have been filled by acclamation.
Carisa Klassen, a current member of the board of trustees who is not seeking re-election after serving one term, told CTV News Winnipeg the decision was a personal one.
“I’m going back to post-secondary to gain a master’s (degree),” Klassen said, who noted she also has middle school children.
Klassen said Bill 64 wasn’t a factor for her and believes she still would’ve been able to contribute if she had chosen to seek re-election.
“I think that my contribution for Hanover School Division was largely bridging a gap of communication between senior administration and my community members,” Klassen said.
Jeff Friesen, a farmer who was acclaimed as a trustee in the division in one of the seats Klassen held, declined an on-camera interview but told CTV News Winnipeg via phone he fought hard against Bill 64 and chose to run because he’s a strong believer the community should have a voice in how their schools are run.
“If having school boards are important to areas then we have to have people who are willing to step up to do the job,” Friesen said, noting he’d like to see more schools in smaller communities so students don’t have to commute into Steinbach.
But the number of appointments that will be required to fill vacant seats due to a lack of candidates has increased this year.
Approximately 10 per cent of 295 available school trustee seats have been left vacant with 30 seats that will need to be filled by appointees, just under three times the number of appointments compared to 2018.
It’s a task, under the Public Schools Act, that is typically carried out by the newly-elected board unless a majority of seats on a board need to be filled.
“It’s more than appointment because they really have to recruit them,” Wiens said. “They actually have to go out of their way and find somebody and tap them on the shoulder and say, ‘would you be willing to do this.’”
He said he’s not personally aware of a situation where an appointee couldn’t be found to fill a vacant seat.
Manitobans go to the polls to elect municipal governments and school board trustees on Oct. 26.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Serial sexual offender linked to unsolved 1970s homicides of four Calgary girls, women
An investigation into unsolved historical homicides from the 1970s has linked the deaths of two girls and two young women in and around Calgary to a now-deceased serial offender.
Scottie Scheffler isn't the first pro golfer to be arrested during a tournament
Scottie Scheffler's arrest hours before his second-round tee time at the PGA Championship in Louisville, Kentucky, will go down as one of the most shocking in professional golf history. It certainly wasn't the first, though.
NEW What a wildfire survivor says she regrets not grabbing before leaving home
Carol Christian had 15 minutes to evacuate her home during the Fort McMurray wildfires in 2016. She ended up losing the house and everything inside. Now, she wants to share the lessons she learned.
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
B.C. man 'attacked suddenly' by adult grizzly near Alberta border: RCMP
A B.C. man is recovering from multiple injuries after he was "attacked suddenly" by an adult grizzly bear near Elkford Thursday afternoon.
Canadian convicted of attacking Nancy Pelosi's husband with a hammer sentenced to 30 years
The man convicted of attempting to kidnap then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and attacking her husband with a hammer was sentenced Friday to 30 years in prison.
Anglers reel in 3.5-metre-long tiger shark off coast of Florida: 'She found my bait'
A group of fishers said it took roughly 20 minutes to reel in this 3.5-metre-long tiger shark off the coast of Florida.
World No. 1 golfer charged with police officer assault before PGA Championship second round
World number one golfer Scottie Scheffler was arrested and charged with the assault of a police officer in what he called a 'chaotic situation' before being released in time to start his second round at the PGA Championship on Friday.
Australia's richest woman seeks removal of her portrait from exhibition
Art is subjective. And while many artists long to share their work with the world, there's no guarantee that the audience will understand it, or even like it.