New campaign rules reshape school board race

Prospective school board candidates across Manitoba are facing new campaign regulations in the upcoming trustee elections.

The new laws include donation limits, mandatory registration and financial disclosure requirements.

Senior election official Heather Ewasiuk, during a presentation to the Brandon School Division board of trustees on Monday, said the legislative changes will govern the Oct. 28 school board election.

“The new rules bring school trustee elections more in line with municipal elections, where campaign finance regulations have been in place for years,” she told the trustees.

“Anyone seeking election as a school trustee must first register with the senior election official before accepting contributions or spending money on a campaign. The registration period opens June 30 and runs until the close of nominations on Sept. 22.”

Ewasiuk said it does not mean that a candidate cannot announce their candidacy before June 30.

“You can hold a press conference if you wish, but you cannot incur any expenses until you’ve registered, and you cannot accept any contributions until you’ve registered,” she said.

Candidates will be required to provide banking information for an account used to track campaign funds, and registration must be completed before nomination papers can be obtained, she said.

The legislation also places limits on campaign contributions.

“Only Manitoba residents can donate to school trustee campaigns; you can not take contributions from organizations, unions and service clubs,” she told the board.

Individual donations are capped at $1,500 per person, although candidates may contribute up to $7,500 of their own money toward their campaigns, she said.

When trustee Breeanna Sieklicki asked whether spouses could each contribute the maximum amount, Ewasiuk confirmed they could.

“You cannot accept cash contributions over $25 … This is a transparency issue, so if somebody wants to give you $50 cash, tell them you need either a cheque or an electronic fund transfer, so that there is some paperwork to follow,” she said.

The new rules also ban anonymous contributions altogether.

“Any anonymous donations received must be turned over to me and then turned over to the school division. Your expenses cannot exceed your contributions, so you cannot run a deficit,” she said.

Ewasiuk said campaign expenses can include items such as election signs, pamphlets, hall rentals, food and refreshments for campaign workers, and travel costs. Non-monetary contributions, such as donated goods or professional services, must also be assigned a value and recorded in campaign financial statements.

For example, a butcher donating hotdogs for a campaign event or a graphic designer volunteering campaign materials would create reportable contributions and expenses.

Following the election, candidates must submit campaign finance statements detailing contributions and expenditures. Donors contributing more than $250 must be publicly identified, including their name and address, while smaller contributions can be reported without naming donors, she said.

The statements will be posted publicly on the school division website.

Any surplus campaign funds remaining after an election, she said, must be turned over to the school division, which will hold the money in trust for future elections. Candidates who run again can reclaim the funds, while money left behind by those who do not seek office again will become part of the division’s general revenues.

Another significant legislative change for 2026 is the inclusion of First Nation reserve residents in school board elections.

Residents of Sioux Valley Dakota Nation who meet age and residency requirements will now be eligible to vote and run in Brandon School Division elections. Sioux Valley has opted to participate in the division’s Ward 2, or rural ward, elections, she said.

Trustee candidates must be Canadian citizens, at least 18 years old on election day and have lived within the school division for at least six months before Oct. 28. Unlike municipal elections, non-resident property owners are not eligible to run for school board positions.

The nomination period will run from Sept. 16 to Sept. 22, with election day scheduled for Oct. 28. Candidates must file their campaign finance statements by April 30, 2027.

Ewasiuk said additional election details, including voting locations and polling arrangements, will be provided closer to election day. The election will use electronic vote-counting machines, which she said will significantly speed up the tabulation of results.

The campaign finance requirements stem from Bill 39, the Public Schools Amendment Act (Campaign Financing for School Trustees), which came into force on June 3, 2025 and will apply fully to the Oct. 28, 2026 school board elections.

According to a Manitoba School Boards Association document titled “An Overview of Recent Legislative Amendments and Their Implications,” the legislation introduces formal campaign financing rules for school board elections across Manitoba.

Ewasiuk told trustees the changes mirror many of the accountability and transparency measures already familiar to municipal election candidates, while introducing new reporting responsibilities for school board trustees.

Meanwhile, vice-chair Duncan Ross is the only candidate who has announce his intention to seek re-election.

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