Candidate Forms/Documents
The following Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing forms are required for candidates.
Form 1 - Nomination Paper
Form 2 - Endorsement of Nomination
Form 4 - Financial Statement Auditor's Report Candidate
Form 5 - Financial Statement Subsequent Expenses
Form 6 - Notice of Extension of Campaign Period
2022 Candidates' Guide
Requirements to run for Mayor, City Council or Regional Council
To run for Municipal Office, on the day the nomination paper is filed, a person must be:
- a Canadian citizen
- at least 18 years of age
- a resident of the City of Niagara Falls, or
- an owner or tenant of land in the City of Niagara Falls, or the spouse of the owner or tenant
- not legally prohibited from voting
- not disqualified by any legislation from holding municipal office
Who cannot be a Council candidate
The following people are disqualified from being elected as a member of Council, or from holding office as a member of Council:
- a judge of any court
- a member of the Provincial Legislature, the Federal House of Commons or Senate who has not resigned from their office by the close of nominations. Proof of resignation must be provided by the close of nominations or the Clerk will not certify the nomination.
- a candidate who failed to file the necessary financial statement in the the last municipal election or by-election.
City of Niagara Falls and Niagara Region employees
- Employees of the City of Niagara Falls or Niagara Region who wish to run for Mayor, City Council or Regional Council must take an unpaid leave of absence before filing a nomination paper.
- The employee must provide a copy of the documentation showing that they have taken the leave of absence and the effective date.
Those who are interested in running for Regional Council, find out more information about what services the Niagara Region provides.
Requirements to run for School Board Trustee
To run for any of the four school boards, on the day the Nomination Paper is filed, a person must be:
- a Canadian citizen
- at least 18 years of age
- a resident in the area of jurisdiction of the board
- not legally prohibited from voting
- not disqualified by any legislation from holding municipal office
For more information about being a School Board Trustee and being a candidate, please visit the 2022 Ontario Municipal and School Board Election website.
Who cannot be a School Board Trustee candidate
The following people are disqualified from being elected as a school board trustee, or from holding office on any school board:
- a clerk, treasurer, deputy-clerk or deputy-treasurer of any municipality within the area of jurisdiction of the school board except those on unpaid leave of absence.
- a member of the Provincial Legislature, the Federal House of Commons or Senate who has not resigned from their office by the close of nominations. Proof of resignation must be provided by the close of nominations or the Clerk will not certify the nomination.
- a candidate who failed to file the necessary financial statement in the last municipal election or by-election.
School board employees
- Employees of any school board (including supply teachers) are disqualified from being elected as school board trustee or from holding office on any school board, except during a leave of absence.
- The employee must be on a leave of absence before filing their nomination paper.
- They must provide the Clerk with documentation showing that they have taken the leave of absence and the effective date.
Types of school boards
- District School Board of Niagara
- Niagara Catholic District School Board
- Conseil scolaire Viamonde (French Public)
- Conseil scolaire catholique MonAvenir (French Separate)
Areas of jurisdiction
If you wish to run for school board trustee you must live in the jurisdiction. For the District School Board of Niagara and the Niagara Catholic District School Board the area of jurisdiction is the City of Niagara Falls. Those interested in running for the French Public school board, must register with the City of Welland. Those interested in running for the French Separate school board, must register with the City of St. Catharines.
Filing a Nomination
Nominations must be filed in person as original signatures are required.
To file a nomination, you must provide:
- Nomination Paper (Form 1)
- Endorsement of Nomination (Form 2) - At least 25 declaration endorsements by eligible electors (for Mayor, City and Regional Council only)
- Current acceptable identification
- Nomination filing fee (paid by cash or debit card, certified cheque or money order, payable to 'City of Niagara Falls.'
- $200.00 for Mayor
- $100.00 for City Council, Regional Council or School Board Trustee
If an agent is filing a nomination on your behalf, the agent must provide the above documents as well as their own identification (Form 1).
Any documents that are not complete will not be accepted.
Where to file your nomination
- All nominations are to be filed at the Office of the City Clerk at Niagara Falls City Hall, 4310 Queen Street.
- Before visiting City Hall to file nominations, we ask all prospective candidates to please make an appointment with the Clerk's Department by calling: 905-356-7521 ext. 0
Withdrawing Your Nomination
If you decide you no longer wish to run you must:
- File the Withdrawal of Nomination form in person (City Clerk's Office)
- Provide identification
- File a financial statement by the deadline date
Changing Office
You can change the office you're running for even after you have filed your papers. To do so, you must file a Nomination Paper for the new office. For mayor, city council or regional council candidates you are not required to submit additional declaration of endorsements - the ones you submitted for the first office is transferred to the second office.
Nomination filing fee
If the nomination filing fee is the same for the new office, no extra payment is required. If the nomination filing fee is different for the new office, the difference must be paid, if applicable. Note: the filing fee is not refunded until you file the financial statement by the deadline date.
Campaign finances
- If you decide to run for a different office on the same council or school board, and both offices are elected at large everything (contributions, expenses, etc.) from your first campaign is simply transferred to your second campaign. You will only file one financial statement.
- A contributor's total contribution cannot exceed $1200.00 for both campaigns.
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (FORM 4): Financial Statement and Auditor’s Report (Section 88, Municipal Elections Act).
The Municipal Elections Act requires a candidate to file a financial statement. The deadline for filing financial statements is on or before 2:00 p.m., March 31, 2023. A candidate who misses filing the deadline may file within a 30 day grace period, provided that a $500.00 late filing fee is paid to the municipality.
The Municipal Elections Act stipulates that candidates whose campaign contributions and total expenses are greater than $10,000.00 must have their financial statement audited and submit the auditor’s report to the Clerk along with their financial statement. The auditor’s report shall be prepared by an auditor licensed under the Public Accounting Act, 2004.
The Clerk is required to make a public report of candidates who filed financial statements and who did not.
The Municipal Elections Act also requires that the City make the Form 4 available electronically.
Regarding the Refund of Nomination Filing Fee (Section 34 Municipal Elections Act)
A candidate is entitled to receive a refund of the nomination filing fee if the documents required under subsection 88.25 (1) are filed on or before 2 p.m. on the filing date in accordance with that subsection.
