Below are some frequently asked questions about the OAA Council Elections, as well as technical inquiries on ballots/voting. For further questions, please contact the
offficeoftheregistrar@oaa.on.ca
What is the OAA Council?
The OAA exists to protect the public interest and govern the members and practice of architecture in Ontario. The OAA has a governing Council that sets policy direction; it comprises architects who are elected, as well as up to five members of the public appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council (LGIC).
By participating on Council, one strengthens the profession’s capacity to self-regulate, and act in the public interest to ensure members maintain the standards of competency and conduct within the profession.
How do I set up my email for the election?
To avoid the vote invitation email getting caught in junk filters, please add
mail1.bigpulse.com to your safe senders list.
If you are still unable to receive emails BigPulse will be able to send an individual email again. If this still does not get through please contact your ISP security manager and ask them to white list the domain name mail1.bigpulse.com which currently uses IP addresses: 209.15.228.130 and 5.44.17.248. Many people may be using the same ISP so your ISP may need to remove any restrictions on the number of emails that can be received from mail.bigpulse.com.
I didn’t receive my nomination form or ballot. What should I do?
If you did not receive your nomination form or ballot, please check your e-mail account's Spam or Junk folder to ensure the message was not filtered. If you still cannot find it, please email the
Office of the Registrar and we will make sure you receive your form.
Who can vote?
Any architect may cast one vote for each member to be elected to council:
a) in the electoral district within which they have an address of record; and
b) in the Province of Ontario Electoral District (when this seat is available).
If I live abroad, can I still vote?
As long as you are a member of the OAA, you have the right to vote. If you reside outside Ontario, you will only be able to vote for the Province of Ontario Electoral District (when this seat is available).
Why can’t I vote for the President?
Similar to federal and provincial elections, members of the Association do not elect the President or Vice Presidents. Instead, these positions are elected among the elected Councillors during the January Council meeting.
How do I vote?
Electronic ballots will be emailed on the second Monday of November. You must cast your vote by the fourth Monday of November for it to count.
I'd like to know more about the voting process. What percentage of members vote, and how many votes are required to be the winning candidate?
There is no minimum number of votes required. Majority wins. Voter turnout is not very high, with fewer than 30% of members voting. We are always seeking for new ideas to increase voter turnout!
Great improvement to the voting system, but with one caveat: How do you know it was me?
Your vote is anonymous. Each ballot is distributed to a specific email address by the online election service provider. The OAA cannot see the email or name of the person who voted. Each individual link to the ballots is tied to your email address and can only be used once. The Registrar cannot know who completed the ballot whether it is an online ballot or a paper ballot.