Planning your campaign finances is a key part of running for office. Please review the financial requirements for candidates in the City of Cornwall. After the election, as a candidate, you must file a financial statement. Please familiarize yourself with the rules around campaign finances, including deadlines, auditor requirements and what to do if you need to extend your campaign. 

Filing your financial statements

As a candidate, you must file a financial statement and auditor's report with the City Clerk by 2:00 p.m. on March 27th, 2027 following the election year. This requirement applies to all candidates, including those who were:

• Elected
• Acclaimed
• Defeated
• Who withdrew after nomination
• Did not actively campaign
• Were not certified

You must file your statements in person or through an agent at the Office of the City Clerk in the Cornwall City Hall at 360 Pitt St. Office hours are Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding statutory holidays.

Legislated campaign periods and filing dates

As a candidate, your campaign period begins on the day on which they file a nomination for the office under section 33 of the Municipal Elections Act and ends December 31 in the case of a regular election. 

You may choose to file any time after voting day, as per Section 88.24 of the Municipal Elections Act. If at the end of the campaign period a candidate’s campaign expenses are greater than their campaign income, their campaign will be in a deficit and they may take action to extend their campaign in order to do additional fundraising.

It is your responsibility as a candidate to file a complete and accurate financial statement on time. The filing deadline is 2 p.m. on the last Friday in March following the election: March 30, 2027.

If you filed a nomination form, you must file a financial statement. This includes candidates who withdrew their nomination, candidates who were not certified and did not appear on the ballot, and candidates who were acclaimed.

If your campaign contributions (including contributions from yourself) or campaign expenses are greater than $10,000, you must have your financial statement audited and include the auditor’s report when you submit your financial statement to the City Clerk.

For complete details on filing of financial statements, please visit the Ministry of Municipal Affairs.

Penalties

In accordance with Section 88.20(1) of the Municipal Elections Act, no expense shall be incurred by or under the direction of a person unless they are a candidate.

Section 88.23(2) of the Act, outlines the penalties that may be imposed if a candidate is found guilty of an offence under Section 92(1) and convicted:

1. The candidate forfeits any office to which they were elected and the office is deemed to be vacant; and
2. Until the next regular election has taken place, the candidate is ineligible to be elected or appointed to any office to which this Act applies.