The election for a mayor and two councillors in the Village of Warfield has drawn considerable interest.
Shortly after the 4 p.m. nomination deadline closed Friday, Warfield released the names of six candidates vying for a council seat in the February byelection.
Diane Langman and Brett Rakuson are officially seeking the mayoral seat - both councillors resigned in December with stated intentions of running for the head position.
With two councillor seats open midway through the four-year civic term - four men have thrown their hat into the ring, seeking to fill a spot on the five-member council.
They are Raymond Masleck, Welsey Robillard, Bradley Jansen and Ronald Joseph.
The Trail Times will be highlighting the candidates prior to the first advance voting opportunity on Feb. 15.
Village council is down to two people until general voting day on Feb. 25 - Coun. Shane Ferraro is the lone councillor remaining in position since the November 2015 civic election.
Arlene Parkinson, now serving as Deputy Mayor, won her councillor seat in the April 2016 byelection.
Because the two do not form a quorum, Warfield sought special permission from the province earlier this month so Ferraro and Parkinson could take care of certain village business - like paying the bills.
The village received a Ministerial Order on Jan. 6 permitting the two to take care of housekeeping duties, such as cheque signing, but no weighty decisions like the 2018 budget can be made until the byelection is over.
That means the three new officials will come on board with a heavy workload awaiting - municipal budgets set annual property tax levies,. and councils are mandated to have the months-long process finalized in May.
With that, Parkinson had a little warning to share with the candidates.
“Those new council members and the new mayor are going to be very busy.”
She reminds all village electors to cast a ballot either during two advance voting opportunities on Feb. 15 and Feb. 22, or on Feb. 25, general voting day.
“My hope is to get more voters out than we have in the past,” she added.
According to BC Civic info, Warfield is home to approximately 1,400 eligible voters. Electors not already on the list, may register at the time of voting by completing the required application form at the voting place.
Eligible voters must be a Canadian citizen, 18 years of age or older on general voting day, a BC resident for at least six months or a registered owner of real property in the Village of Warfield for at least 30 days immediately preceding the day of registration.
Resident electors are required to produce two pieces of identification, at least one with a signature.
For more information, contact Chief Election Officer Jackie Patridge at 250.368.8202.