Nanaimo byelection could be held July 8

Councillor resigned due to ill health

Nanaimo electors could be going to the polls in July to choose a new councillor.

The byelection is being held to fill a seat left vacant after councillor Wendy Pratt resigned from council last week.

Members of Nanaimo council voted Monday to consider July 8.

Provincial legislation requires that a byelection be held within 80 days after the municipality’s chief election officer is approved, council heard. Council is expected to approve the appointment of the election officer on April 24.

Pratt had been absent from council meetings since early February. Mayor Bill McKay said she was on holiday for a month and then on medical leave.

He said he was sorry to see her go, describing her as a wellinformed, thoughtful member of council.

Pratt was elected to her first term at council in 2014. The next general municipal election is in 2018.

This will be the second municipal vote in Nanaimo this year.

Citizens voted in March to reject a proposal to borrow up to $80 million to build a new events centre. The referendeum had a record turnout, with 35.3 per cent of registered voters casting a ballot. About 80 per cent were against the proposal.

Pratt’s resignation comes after many volatile months at Nanaimo City Hall. A special prosecutor has been appointed to work with police after city hall complained about McKay late last year and after a council member, who has not been publicly named, was arrested this year.

Meanwhile, Tracy Samra, Nanaimo’s chief administrative officer, was back on the job, attending the Monday council meeting. She had been on medical leave, pending an operation in May.