The Sunshine Coast School District No. 46 (SD46) will need to hold a byelection, as one of the school board trustees will be resigning from her position.
During the public question period of the June 14 school board meeting, the Halfmoon Bay Elementary PAC asked when trustee Samantha Haines would officially resign and when the school district would announce the byelection, since Haines has moved off Coast.
Samantha Haines was an incumbent in the 2022 general elections and was acclaimed to represent Area 1 (the Upper Coast). That area includes Pender Harbour, and Halfmoon Bay, as well as Sechelt Indian Band Lands 6, 6A, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 12A, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 19A, 20, 20A, 21, 21A, 22, 24, 25, 26 and 27.
The trustees took their oath of office on Nov. 8, after the elections in October saw all incumbents re-elected with the addition of Ann Skelcher.
Then, Haines moved out of province with her family earlier this year. She attended the June 14 meeting virtually.
In response to the question, Amanda Amaral, the board chair, confirmed Haines relocated. “However she remains active in our duties … and is taking the responsibility of her role as trustee seriously. Trustee Haines, however, will be resigning from the board and we are privileged right now in that we have some time to plan out what is best for our board, our community, and our district in terms of timing.”
School board trustees in B.C. are not required to resign when they moved out of the community or out of the province (though they must be a resident of B.C. for at least six months before an election). In an email, Amaral said, "The intention of school boards is local representation and local voice. Trustee Haines understands the importance of local voice and representation and she believes it is best to resign to allow for a local community member to become part of the board."
Amaral said they are aiming to have a more formal update this fall, once Haines resigns in writing. The board will be required to appoint an elections officer within 30 days, and call for an election in 80 days. In an email, Amaral confirmed there is an average wait period of four months from date of resignation to signing in a new trustee.
Until then, the other trustees are available to provide representation, receive concerns and to answer questions. Since the June 14 meeting, trustee Skelcher attended the Halfmoon Bay Elementary PAC meeting.
