Process for Electoral Readjustment

The process for readjusting federal electoral boundaries is established by the Electoral Boundaries Readjustment Act. The process is as follows:

1) The Commission proposes boundaries for electoral districts, which are contained in its proposed redistribution plan.

2) The redistribution plan is published in newspaper advertisements that contain maps of the proposed electoral boundaries, and indicate the times and locations of public hearings. Interested individuals may appear at the hearings to express their views on the Commission’s proposals, after notifying the Commission in writing of their intention to make representations. Written notification must take place within fifty-three days after the date of the publication of the last advertisement.

3) After the public hearings, the Commission reviews its initial redistribution plan, makes revisions where appropriate, and submits its final report to the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada. The final report is required no later than April 16, 2003.

4) The report is referred to the House of Commons and is examined by a parliamentary committee. The committee has 30 days (or longer if the House of Commons is not sitting) to discuss any objections to the report.

5) Once Parliament has considered the report, it is returned to the Commission, along with the minutes of the House of Commons committee. The Commission then decides whether to make any modifications to its report and provides a final certified copy of its report to the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada.

6) Once the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada has received the final reports of all Commissions, a draft order is prepared, referred to as a "representation order," describing and naming the electoral districts established by all the Commissions.

7) Within five days of receiving the draft representation order, the Governor in Council must publicly announce the new boundaries in a proclamation, which must then be published in the Canada Gazette.

8) The new boundaries cannot be used in an election until at least one year has passed between the date the representation order was proclaimed and the date that Parliament is dissolved for a general election.

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