In each case the person must be resident in the electoral division for three months. British Columbia. British No property qualification is required'. Persons are enColumbia. titled to be registered as voters provided Residence. N. W. Territories. House holders. Persons disqualified. and (1) they have resided in the province for 12 months, (2) have resided in the electoral district for two months of that period previous to sending in a claim to vote. Indians and Chinese are not entitled to vote. North West Territory. All bona fide residents and householders, not being unenfranchised Indians, within the electoral district, and who have resided in such electoral district for at least 12 months immediately prior to the issue of the writ of election are entitled to vote2. In each Province certain persons are disqualified by law from voting on account of the official positions they hold. The disqualification is usually extended to Judges of Superior, Admiralty and County Courts, Clerks of the Crown and of the Peace, Registrars, Sheriffs, officers in Customs and Excise, agents for the sale of Crown Lands, and Postmasters in cities and towns. Indians are disqualified in Manitoba and policemen in Quebec 3. Persons who have been guilty of corrupt practices are subject to temporary disqualifications. They cannot be registered or vote at an election for 8 years in Ontario, 3 See O. R. S. 1887, c. 9, ss. 4-6, s. 45. Q. 38 Vic. c. 7, s. 11. B. C. Consol. Stat. 1887, c. 66, ss. 3, 6, and 42 Vic. c. 22, s. 4. Man. Consol. Stat. c. 3, s. 8; 44 Vict. c. 12, s. 6. N. S. Rev. Stat. 1884, c. 4, s. 67. 7 years in Quebec and British Columbia, and 6 years in New Brunswick. 2. QUALIFICATIONS OF ELECTED. Each province exacts certain qualifications from every Elected. person who sits in the Assembly. Not only must a member fulfil fixed conditions before he takes his seat, but he is liable to lose it under certain circumstances. All the provinces agree in requiring a member of the Assembly to be (1) a British subject by birth or naturalisation, age Some of the provinces impose additional qualifications. British subjects, Male. Manitoba and British Columbia require members to be Voter. voters in the province, whilst Nova Scotia requires a member either to be a voter or to possess a freehold or equitable estate of the clear yearly value of $8. British Columbia requires a member to have been a resident within the province for one year preceding his election. New Brunswick requires a member to be legally seised Property. or possessed for his own use of freehold or leasehold lands in the Province of the value of $1200 over and above all incumbrances. In Prince Edward's Island the property qualification is fixed at £50, and an oath that he is possessed of such property must be taken by every candidate. The property qualification in Quebec was abolished by the 45 Vic. c. 7. In the North West Territories every elector is qualified to be elected to the Council'. The following persons are as a rule disqualified in all the provinces from sitting in the Legislative Assembly. 1 The following statutes may be referred to on the above qualifications: O. R. S. 1887, c. 9; Q. 38 Vic. c. 7, s. 124; N. S. Rev. Stat. 1884, c. 3, s. 3; N. B. 45 Vic. c. 21; Man. Consol. Stat. c. 3, s. 113; B. C. Consol. Stat. 1877, c. 66, s. 5; P. E. I. 19 Vic. c. 21, s. 12; N. W. T., R. S. C., 1886, c. 50, s. 21. Persons dis 1. Members of the Senate and House of Commons of qualified. Canada. 2. Members of the Legislative Council. 3. Persons holding provincial offices on the nomination of the Crown to which any salary or emolument is attached. Members of the Executive Council are exempted from this rule provided they are elected whilst holding office. 4. Persons holding a federal office of emolument under the Crown, except 5. 1. Officers in the Army, Navy, or Militia, not receiving permanent salary on the staff of the Militia. 2. Postmasters whose yearly salary is not over $100 in Quebec. 3. Justices of the Peace in Ontario and Manitoba. 4. Notaries Public in Ontario. 6. The Chairman of Board of Works in Prince Edward's Island. 7. Justices of Lunatic Asylums, except two in Prince Edward's Island. 8. Teachers of district Schools in Prince Edward's Island. Contractors with the Province or contractors with respect to any public service under which the money of the Province is to be paid. 6. Members of the Legislative Council or Assembly usually vacate their seats on becoming bankrupt or insolvent. 7. Persons found guilty of corrupt practices are disqualified from sitting in the Assembly for 8 years in Ontario, for 7 years in British Columbia and for 6 years in New Brunswick. In addition to the above persons, each province disqualifies certain other officials too numerous to mention '. 1 See on disqualifications, O. R. S. 1887, c. 11, ss. 6--14. Q. 49 & 50 Vic. c. 97. N. S., R. S. 1884, c. 3, s. 11; 49 Vic. c. 6. P. E. I. 25 Vic. c. 18, 3. DISTRIBUTION OF SEATS. Ontario. The British North America Act 18671 fixed Ontario. the number of electoral divisions at 82, each returning one member. In 1871 the Ontario legislature re-arranged the constituencies and increased the Assembly from 82 to 89 members, and in 1885 the number was increased to 90. One member is returned by each electoral district". Quebec. The Legislative Assembly consists of 65 members* Quebec. elected by 65 electoral colleges, each returning one member. An electoral college is formed of an electoral district except in three instances where it is formed of two districts. At the time of the Union certain districts in Quebec were inhabited by a large Protestant population, and in order to safeguard the representation of these districts it was provided, that the limits of such districts should only be altered if the 2nd and 3rd readings of the Bill were passed in the Assembly with the concurrence of the majority of the members representing those districts. Scotia. Nova Scotia. The province is divided into 18 electoral Nova counties, two returning 3 members each and the remainder 2 members each. Bruns New Brunswick. The province is divided into 15 counties New and one city. Five counties return 4 members each, one wick. county 3 members, seven counties 2 members each, two counties 1 member each. The city of St John's returns 2 members'. Prince Edward's Island. The province is divided into P. E. I. 15 electoral districts each returning 2 members*. 39 Vic. c. 3, 42 Vic. c. 13. N. B. 45 Vic. c. 21. Man. Consol. Stat. c. 5. B. C. 40 Vic. c. 42, ss. 10-24, 40 Vic. c. 66, ss. 5, 6. Manitoba. Manitoba. Here there are 31 electoral districts each returning one member'. British N. W. Territories. British Columbia. This province is divided into 13 electoral districts, five returning one member each; five returning 2 members each; two returning 3 members each and one returning 4 members. By the 48 Vic. c. 3, provision has been made for slightly altering the above arrangement after the next dissolution. North West Territories. Members of the Council are elected by electoral districts not exceeding 1000 square miles in extent and containing a population of not less than 1000 inhabitants of adult age. Each district returns one member. The districts are constituted by the LieutenantGovernor by proclamation 3. election. 4. METHOD OF ELECTION. The methods adopted for returning members to the Provincial Assemblies, though varying to some extent in the different provinces, possess some important features in Notice of common. The returning officer, on receipt of the writ or other authority requiring him to hold an election, gives public notice, that on a certain day he will hold a court, or attend at a certain place, to receive the nomination of candidates, and that in case a poll be demanded, it will be taken on a named day. Nomination. Candidates are, except in Ontario and Prince Edward's Island, nominated in writing. The nomination paper must be signed by 25 electors in Quebec; by 2 electors in Nova Scotia; by 12 electors in Manitoba; by 5 electors in British Columbia; and by one or more in New Brunswick. 1 Man. Consol. Stat. c. 5, s. 2. 2 B. C. Constitution Act, 1871, M. 44 Vic. c. 12, s. 1. |