Fifty-two percent. Did you catch that figure? Indeed, you did, as Yukon leads the pack after October's municipal elected where 52% of the elected officials are women. Yukon reached, and exceeded, parity in gender balance in 2018. Applause welcome, as this is a success story to share.
Recent election discussions across the country, and elsewhere, included the desire to have more women elected to municipal councils to achieve a better gender balance. Women's groups have organized to encourage more female candidates, and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) Toward Parity in Municipal Politics program is "dedicated to developing a pan-Canadian strategy to address systemic barriers to women's participation in municipal government. This program brings together Canada's municipal sector with women's organizations at the national, regional and local level, to co-create a strategy dedicated to overcoming the barriers women face when running for office."
FCM also offers two scholarships related to women in politics. The Canadian Women in Municipal Government Scholarship is aimed at secondary school students who contribute to their schools' leadership team or student council-a possible forerunner to the Council Chambers. The Mayor Andrée P. Boucher Memorial Scholarship asks for research submissions related to women in politics. Encouragement for this program is wide spread.
When I am asked how Yukon achieves such good results, an astounding answer does not come to mind. Women take their places in strong leadership roles here, and the municipal arena is an obvious step up from an elected position with an organization (Yukon has about 600 NGOs to choose from). Our gentlemen support women candidates and are not afraid to cast their votes accordingly. After all, it is their mothers, grandmothers, sisters, children or coworkers looking to represent the constituents. Perhaps it suffices to say it is the Yukon culture to lean toward gender balance in their municipalities.
A noticeable change for the Yukon is the lower age bracket of elected representatives, with younger people taking their seats behind the council tables. While exact ages are not available, it is obvious by looking around the room that the retired people now are in the minority at about 10%. With a younger mind set on board, it is probable that differences of opinion will occur on some issues, particularly on those that can be classified as social issues and stray from the basics of asset management, garbage and dog control.
The capital city of Whitehorse again used tabulators to read paper ballots, following on the success of the 2015 election. Tabulators were deployed at each polling place to scan ballots marked manually by the electors. The tabulators read the marked ballots and recorded the votes. When the polls closed, the tabulator provided the results in a matter of minutes.
There was a minor glitch with one polling place, where there was an issue with starting the tabulator. In order to allow the poll to open on time, the first approximately 100 ballots were stored in a ballot box until the tabulator was activated. These ballots were scanned by the tabulator after the polls were closed, causing a delay in the results from that one polling station. Otherwise, no issues were reported.
Assistant City Clerk/Returning Officer Norma Felker noted, "For an election where there are many candidates on the ballot and an elector may mark the ballot for up to six candidates, the tabulator is THE answer for quick and accurate results. I would recommend the system to anyone, and also suggest that an election in Whitehorse should not be conducted without the use of tabulators." She also reflected that the tabulator worked so well in 2015 that the municipality did not even consider not using tabulators for the 2018 election. Another Yukon success story.
The next municipal election for Yukon is scheduled for 2021 as three-year terms are mandated by the Yukon Municipal Act.
