The present map of the Boundary-Similkameen provincial electoral district shows that the riding takes in communities along Hwy. 3 from west of Hedley to east of Christina Lake. To the north it reaches almost to Penticton while the international border forms the southern boundary. The BCEBC is looking for public input on potential new boundaries. (Elections BC)
The next provincial election is still years away, but the commission redrawing the electoral map is inviting comments from the public.
The independent and non-partisan British Columbia Electoral Boundaries Commission (BCEBC) is holding hearings in 29 communities throughout the province to seek the public’s comments on new electoral districts.
The closest hearings to Osoyoos and Oliver are in Penticton on Oct. 8 at 5:30 p.m. at the Days Inn and Conference Centre and in Kelowna on Oct. 9 at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. at Prestige Inn.
Members of the public can also make submissions online through the BCEBC’s website at www.bc-ebc.ca. The deadline for online submissions is Nov. 16.
Osoyoos and Oliver residents are currently in the electoral district of Boundary-Similkameen, which is represented by B.C. Liberal MLA Linda Larson.
The new boundaries and new riding names will be used for the next two provincial general elections.
For the first round of hearings, the commission is asking the public for their thoughts on the current electoral districts and where they may see problems, said Don Main, a spokesperson for the BCEBC. It also wants ideas on changes.
No proposed maps will be released until the BCEBC makes its preliminary report, which it must do by May 2015. At that point the public will have another opportunity to comment.
Main said previous commissions have also sought public input before drawing boundaries.
“They’ve chosen to do that in order to get as much input as they possibly can to be able to make proposals that hopefully satisfy all of the concerns,” he said.
In addition to looking at population numbers, the commission also looks at “communities of interest.”
Typically this means trying to group towns into the same constituency as their trading areas or with other communities where residents commute.
The commission will redistribute the present 85 electoral districts in the province, but it has the option to add up to two additional seats, Main said.
Normally the population of new districts must not deviate by more than 25 per cent from a provincial quota, however, the legislation makes exceptions for special circumstances.
In particular several regions in the north and east of the province containing 17 ridings are guaranteed that number of seats, even though their populations may be below the normal threshold.
Sitting MLAs will also have a chance to comment on the preliminary report before a final report is released by November 2015.
The next general election day in B.C. is scheduled for May 9, 2017.
For more information, visit www.bc-ebc.ca.
RICHARD McGUIRE
Osoyoos Times
