The federal Department of Indigenous Affairs is stepping in to order a new election on the George Gordon First Nation, which is located about 125 kilometers northeast of Regina.
This follows a court ruling that overturned the results because of voting irregularities. In the meantime, the chief and band council are preparing their response.
A letter from the Indigenous Affairs Department has gone out to band members, but it has not been posted on the band’s website. Basically it says the election result is set aside. The chief and council are no longer in office, so the department will appoint a certified electoral officer as soon as possible so a new election can be held.
The court challenge was launched by band member, Solomon Cyr. He says it has been hard to get information on what is going on.
“I find it interesting that the letter that was issued to all band members has not been forwarded as a communique in any form from the band office,” he said.
The court ruling concluded there were 31 ballots unaccounted for, 17 for chief and 14 for council members. Because the margin of victory was so close, they could have affected the outcome.
Cyr says not everyone was happy with his challenge, but he says democracy won.
“People are going to see it as an evolution in the sophistication of our governance processes,” he said.
The chief and band council are preparing a response, and will issue a statement later this week.
In the meantime, the band manager says essential services and programs will continue to be delivered to the membership during this interim period.
After the initial court ruling, which came down October 28th, the band council posted a notice on its website indicating it was reviewing the decision and would respond within 30 days.
It is now reviewing both that decision and the decision from the department of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada.