• Candidate must be a resident of the Township of Rideau Lakes or a non-resident owner or tenant of land in the Township of Rideau Lakes or the spouse of such non-resident owner or tenant;
  • a Canadian citizen
  • at least 18 years old;
  • not legally prohibited from voting;  and not disqualified by any legislation from holding municipal office.
  • You will need 25 signatures on your nomination form and must pay a fee of $100.

Despite the above, the following people are disqualified from being elected as a member of Council or from holding office as a member of Council:

  • an employee of the Municipality unless he or she takes an unpaid leave of absence beginning the day they are nominated and resigns if elected to the office;
  • a judge of any court;
  • a member of the Provincial Legislature, the Federal House of Commons or Senate who has not resigned from their office by the close of nominations. Proof of resignation must be provided by the close of nominations or the Clerk will not certify the nomination; and
  • a candidate who failed to file the necessary financial statement(s) in the last Municipal election or by-election.

Municipal Candidates

An individual can become a candidate by filing the following information with the Returning Officer, beginning  February 7, 2023 during regular business hours and before Nomination Day of March 31, 2023 at 2:00 pm:

  • the prescribed Nomination Paper form 
  • the prescribed declaration by at least 25 persons endorsing the nomination who are eligible to vote 
  • a completed Consent to Release Personal Information
  • the prescribed nomination filing fee of  $100 for the office of Councillor

The candidate or the agent filing the nomination form is required to present proof of identity. 

Candidate's Guide

The Ministry of Municipal Affairs produces a Candidates' Guide to provide information to candidates in municipal and school board elections.  A link to this guide is available here.

Candidates are not allowed to spend money to campaign or ask for or accept contributions before filing nomination forms.

The first day that nominations can be filed for the upcoming election will be Tuesday, February 7, 2023. Nomination day (the deadline to file a nomination) for the upcoming election will be Friday, March 31, 2023 at 2:00 p.m..

Key Dates

For a complete list of Key Dates, visit the Important Dates section of the website.

Who Is Running

As nominations are received, the Meet the Candidates page will be updated.