School democracy undermined by voter abstention and a lack of new candidates? - September 14, 2026
- Sandra Padovani
School board elections, to be held on October 26 in conjunction with municipal elections, are experiencing a steady decline in voter turnout. Furthermore, with too few candidates, re-elections by acclamation are on the rise, a phenomenon that is raising concerns among many stakeholders about the democratic health of school governance.
In Ontario, this vote aims to elect school trustees within the electoral districts of each school board, which has up to 12 districts, for a new four-year term, from 2026 to 2030.
However, during the last municipal and school elections in 2022, the provincial participation rate collapsed to 36.3%, continuing its decline after the 38.3% recorded in 2018 and the 44% of 2010.
Mathieu Fleury, former Ottawa city councillor and candidate for the Conseil des écoles publiques de l'Est de l'Ontario (CEPEO), points out that this is a broader disaffection that is affecting the whole country, but the municipal level has been suffering particularly for about ten years.
Mathieu Fleury is a candidate for Wards 12 and 13 in Ottawa for the Conseil des écoles publiques de l'Est de l'Ontario (Eastern Ontario Public School Board). Photo: Mathieu Fleury's official website
“People arrive, they barely know who to vote for in the mayoral election, then they have to decide who will represent them as a city councillor. And finally, as the very last item on the ballot, they have to choose a school board trustee,” he explains. Citizens thus struggle to learn about the candidates, their platforms, or the real issues being addressed by the various candidates.
Yet, despite being the poor relation of municipal elections, the school board is one of the political levels closest to the communities. Often overlooked, school board trustees manage substantial public budgets and define local education policies. In addition to representing the local population, these elected officials are responsible for ensuring the board's governance and accountability.
Several school boards claim to actively promote the importance of voting and nominations on their digital platforms. However, their efforts stop there: official websites only publish a simple list of candidates. Profiles, strategic visions, and political platforms of aspiring trustees remain virtually nonexistent online.
According to Mr. Fleury, the lack of genuine campaigns exacerbates this phenomenon. Furthermore, in many ridings, the shortage of candidates leads to elections by acclamation, which nullifies the vote, discourages voter participation, and erodes the habit of local voting.
A lack of candidates and renewal
"If people vote without having any idea about the candidates, or if there are too many people being cheered, these are all indicators of a need for reform," notes the former city councilor, who raises the idea of modernizing the system by, for example, limiting the number of terms to two to force renewal.
A need for renewal shared by Yelena Nichilo, a mother of two, very involved in school life, who is running for the first time for a seat in Toronto West with the MonAvenir Catholic School Board.
"In this election, nine out of 12 candidates have already been elected by acclamation since they were the only ones to have submitted their candidacy," she reports. "It's essentially the same group of people playing musical chairs from one election to the next."
Yelena Nichilo, mother of two sons and chair of the school council at Sacred Heart Catholic Elementary School in Toronto, is running for school trustee in Toronto for the MonAvenir School Board. Photo: Courtesy
She believes that most of the advisors have been in their positions for too long. "Many have become complacent. They are keen to protect their positions and cover for each other," she laments.
Without any real electoral opposition, she believes that they are not being challenged enough and that they would also not be sufficiently challenging the administration of the School Board.
This lack of renewal would result in the absence of new perspectives.
Benoit Fortin, president of the Viamonde school board, also advocates for better renewal of school board members to improve governance, as well as active parental involvement in school life.
"Active community participation is the only guarantee of sound governance; putting one's name on a ballot, voting every four years, attending public meetings, volunteering in schools, and for parents to follow their children's progress are all guarantees of academic success."
Transparency issues?
Exasperated by a lack of transparency and communication in a project to redevelop the courtyard of the Sacred Heart School in Toronto, Ms. Nichilo decided to enter the race out of conviction.
“My parents and I spent most of our summer trying to understand what happened: how the decisions were made, how the public funds were spent, and who was supposed to oversee it.”
She explains that the school board members allowed the project to proceed, which underwent a change of direction, without demanding the publication of the results of the parent survey or clear answers regarding the financial consequences.
Yelena Nichilo claims that their school counselor refused to meet with a group of parents and answer questions regarding decisions made on the subject of investments made in the school.
“School boards administer significant amounts of public money. Trustees must be prepared to ask tough questions, demand transparency, and hold the administration accountable. And that hasn’t been done here. Are there other projects where trustees have turned a blind eye? I want to bring about changes within the Board, because this is unacceptable,” she insists.
She believes that transparency and representing the interests of parents should be the priority for elected school trustees.
