One former candidate for local government office won’t be able to run again in the next municipal election in 2026.
The Report of the Chief Electoral Officer on the 2022 General Local Elections lists Deanna Lewis, who ran for mayor of Squamish last election, as disqualified from running in the next municipal election.
General local elections were held across British Columbia, including in the District of Squamish, on Oct. 15, 2022.
The Elections BC report on the elections was released on July 18.
The Local Elections Campaign Financing Act (LECFA) requires candidates, elector organizations and third-party advertising sponsors to file campaign financing disclosure statements with Elections BC.
The statements must be filed within 90 days after Election Day and include information on all campaign contributions, election expenses, transfers and other transactions related to a campaign.
Elections BC told The Squamish Chief that Lewis submitted her 2022 General Local Elections disclosure statement, but was required to file a supplementary report by Aug. 9, 2023.
A spokesperson told The Squamish Chief on July 29 that the organization has not received the supplementary report to date.
"Under LECFA, these candidates are disqualified from being nominated for, elected to or holding a local authority office in B.C. until after the next general local elections, scheduled for Oct. 17, 2026,” reads the report.
"Elections BC recognizes that the disclosure requirements represent a significant responsibility for local elections campaigns and is committed to providing supportive, accessible and efficient service to all filers and local jurisdictions.”
In terms of the supplemental information, Elections BC says that a supplementary report “is a complete filing of all of the reporting forms. A supplementary report must: provide details about the addition, change or correction to the original disclosure statement, include a description of the circumstances that led to filing the supplementary report, be in a form approved by Elections BC.”
Lewis told The Squamish Chief she tried to give Elections BC everything it wanted, but it wasn’t enough.
“I tried to explain to them so many times,” she said. “I was my own accountant and what they were trying to ask me, I already provided everything I could, and they said it [didn’t] suffice.”
She stressed that her campaign spending was half of what she could budget.
“I was really trying to empower people to be able to go out and vote and want to go vote because they never had someone who represented them,” she said, of running for mayor. “And being local, being Indigenous, being a woman—there were so many things to it. You know, just even having my ancestral name on that ballot was huge for our ancestors. For me to do that, when there was a time when we weren't allowed to vote.
“If we aren’t inserting ourselves in places of power and decision-making, how do we expect our younger generations to do that and want to believe they can do those things? And that's why I ran, to bring those issues to the table, but really wanting to set a path for our next generation.”
It wasn’t in her plan to run again in the next election, anyway, but she doesn’t rule out running for another government role one day.
Overall, there were 3,298 candidates in B.C. in the local elections in 2022.
Of the 3,424 political participants (which includes elector organizations and third-party sponsors, as well as candidates), 3,363 (98 %) filed disclosure statements by the deadline; 36 filed by the late deadline, paying the $500 fine; 23 filed after that; and 27 haven't filed to date.
A total of 66 candidates, including Lewis, are disqualified from running for a local government position in 2026.
The spokesperson said that Lewis can still submit the supplementary report at any time.
“However, she will remain disqualified until after the 2026 General Local Elections. After the 2026 election, the disqualification will be lifted, regardless of whether the supplementary report has been submitted or not.”
Elections BC reviews disclosure statements, which can be seen on its site.
