EMSB bucks trend as other English school board positions acclaimed

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Voters in the English Montreal School Board will have choices to make when school board elections occur on Nov. 3.

This is in contrast to other English boards, where many positions will be filled by acclamation, according to information provided to The Gazette on Tuesday by returning officers.

Candidates had until Sept. 29 to submit nomination papers.

At the EMSB, two candidates are running for chair, and there are two candidates each for the 10 commissioner positions.

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The two candidates for chair — incumbent Joe Ortona and Katherine Korakakis, president of the English Parents’ Committee Association of Quebec — are each running with slates of candidates. Five commissioners are seeking re-election.

The EMSB is Quebec’s largest English board, serving 35,000 students.

In recent years, the EMSB has played a prominent role in legal battles against the Legault government on issues ranging from a ban on religious symbols for new teachers to regulations on the language that board officials are allowed to use in communication.

Anglophone community leaders have stressed the importance of a high turnout on Nov. 3 to preserve the institutions, which Quebec has been trying to eliminate since 2020. The boards have been described as critical to the vitality of the English-speaking community.

In 2021, Ortona and nine of the 10 EMSB commissioners ran unopposed. A similar situation occurred at other English boards that year.

At the time, board officials blamed the large number of acclamations on confusion over who could run, as well as pandemic restrictions and delays.

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Again this year, election officials won’t be busy at most boards.

At Montreal’s other English board — the Lester B. Pearson School Board — chair Judy Kelley was acclaimed, as were the nine commissioners running for re-election.

Elections will only be required for three LBPSB commissioners.

It’s a similar story at five other boards:

New Frontiers School Board: The chair and nine of 10 commissioners were acclaimed.

Riverside School Board: The chair and 11 commissioners won by acclamation.

Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board: Seven of nine commissioners were acclaimed. There will be elections for the chair and two commissioners.

Western Quebec School Board: The chair and 10 of 11 commissioner positions were acclaimed.

Eastern Townships School Board: The chair and 11 commissioners won by acclamation.

Information was not available for the Central Quebec School Board or Eastern Shores School Board.

Who can vote?

Voters do not have to be parents or have children in the school system.

A parent whose child is or has been admitted to an English school board should already be registered on the board’s electoral list, but should confirm their status.

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Parents with a child currently in a French school service centre cannot vote in English board elections.

However, anglophones and francophones who previously sent their children to French schools but who now want to vote in English board elections can choose to register on the electoral list of their local English school board.

People who do not have children can choose to vote at their local English board.

English school boards manage updates to their electoral lists.

Voters who want to add their names must complete a form and return it to their local school board. Boards have posted information about the process on their websites.

Voters on the electoral list should receive a notice in the mail in the coming weeks with information about voting. The last day to update the list is Oct. 15.

Advance voting will occur on Sunday, Oct. 27 between noon and 8 p.m.

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Election day is Sunday, Nov. 3 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Legal battles over school boards

Citing low turnout rates, Premier François Legault’s government in 2020 aimed to eliminate all elected school boards and centralize control of the school system within the provincial government.

French boards were abolished and replaced with service centres overseen by the province.

But English boards went to court to plead for an exemption, arguing the law was unconstitutional as it infringed on the anglophone community’s right to manage and control its schools.

In August 2023, Quebec Superior Court ruled the attempt to scrap English boards was unconstitutional. Quebec is appealing. The case is expected to drag on for years, including a probable Supreme Court challenge.

Candidates at Montreal’s two English boards

English Montreal School Board

Chair: Katherine Korakakis, Joe Ortona

Ward 1: Ahuntsic-Cartierville—Montréal-Nord
Franco Mazzariello, Team Katherine Korakakis
Susan Perera, Team Joe Ortona

Ward 2: Côte-des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
Chelsea Craig, Team Joe Ortona
Howie Silbiger, Team Katherine Korakakis

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Ward 3: Côte-St-Luc—Montreal West—Hampstead
Samara Perez, Team Katherine Korakakis
Paola Samuel, Team Joe Ortona

Ward 4: Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve—Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie—Plateau-Mont-Royal—Anjou—Montreal-Est
Maria Corsi, Team Joe Ortona
Viktoriya Grosko, Team Katherine Korakakis

Ward 5: Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
Joseph Lalla, Team Katherine Korakakis
Sharon Nelson, Team Joe Ortona

Ward 6: Rivière-des-Prairies—Pointe-aux-Trembles
Tony Aversano, Team Katherine Korakakis
Pietro Mercuri, Team Joe Ortona

Ward 7: St-Laurent
James Kromida, Team Joe Ortona
Vicky Pololos, Team Katherine Korakakis

Ward 8: St-Léonard
Mario Pietrangelo, Team Joe Ortona
Antonio Zaruso, Team Katherine Korakakis

Ward 9: Villeray—St-Michel–Parc-Extension—Mont-Royal—Outremont
Joanne Charron, Team Katherine Korakakis
Paula Kilian, Team Joe Ortona

Ward 10: Westmount—Sud-Ouest—Ville-Marie
Shalani Bel, Team Katherine Korakakis
Julien Feldman, Team Joe Ortona

Lester B. Pearson School Board

Electoral Division 2
Frank di Bello
Dario Arella

Electoral Division 6
Craig Berger
Alaina Charszan

Electoral Division 9
Michael Papoulias
Maureen Baron

ariga@postmedia.com

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