Metro Vancouver candidate who was 2 votes shy of being elected gets spot on council after random draw
A Metro Vancouver incumbent candidate who nearly wasn't re-elected earlier this month is taking the sixth and final seat on council after a partial judicial recount went to a random draw.
After the Oct. 15 municipal election, a recount was launched after results for two Port Moody candidates were extremely close.
"The preliminary results show a close result – a difference of two votes – between two of the candidates who ran for the position of councillor," Philip Lo, Port Moody's chief election officer, said in a statement last week.
"While the city's General Local Government Election Bylaw and B.C.’s Local Government Act do not require an automatic recount under such circumstances, I feel it’s the right thing to do and supports our values of fairness and transparency, and our commitment to democracy."
Those preliminary results showed council candidate David Stuart was elected with 3,596 votes. Amy Lubik came just behind him, missing out on a seat on council, with 3,594 votes.
While Lo declared Stuart the winner on Oct. 19, Lubik filed an application for a judicial recount on Monday. That recount led to a tie of 3,597 votes for each candidate.
Following city bylaws, the result was then determined by drawing of lots.
"Presided over by Judge Lee, the name of each candidate was written on a separate piece of paper, folded in a uniform manner, and placed in a container large enough to allow them to be shaken," a statement from the City of Port Moody released Friday said.
"One paper was then randomly withdrawn from the container, and Judge Lee declared elected Amy Lubik for the sixth seat on Port Moody City Council."
OTHER ELECTIONS GO TO RANDOM DRAW
Port Moody wasn't the only municipal election forced to go to a random draw to select a representative.
In Canal Flats, a tie of 158 votes each between mayoral candidates Mark Doherty and Douglas McCutcheon eventually went to drawing of lots after multiple internal recounts. In that case, the two candidates agreed to not move forward with a judicial recount.
"The provincial court judge pulled the name from a box and declared that Mark Doherty is the mayor-elect," a statement from the Village of Canal Flats said.
Last election, Peachland's mayor was picked by drawing of lots after Cindy Fortin and Harry Gough both received 804 votes. Ultimately, Fortin's name was picked.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
First court appearance for boy and girl charged in death of Halifax 16-year-old
A girl and a boy, both 14 years old, made their first appearance today in a Halifax courtroom, where they each face a second-degree murder charge in the stabbing death of a 16-year-old high school student.