Candidates can file their Nomination Form to run for office starting May 1, 2026 at the City Clerk’s Office at City Hall during business hours. Nominations can be filed until 2 p.m. on August 21, 2026.
Nominations can be filed for the offices of:
- Mayor (1 position)
- City-County Councillor (4 positions)
- City Councillor (4 positions)
- School Board Trustees
Nomination eligibility requirements
To run for the positions of Mayor, City Councillor, or City-County Councillor you must be:
- A Canadian citizen
- At least 18 years of age
- A resident of the City of Sarnia, or
- An owner or tenant of land in the City of Sarnia, or the spouse of the owner or tenant
- Not legally prohibited from voting
- Not disqualified by any legislation to be elected or from holding municipal office.
To run for a School Board Trustee position you must be:
- A Canadian citizen
- At least 18 years of age
- Qualified to vote for members of that school board
- A resident in the area of jurisdiction of the school board
- Not legally prohibited from voting
- Not disqualified by any legislation from being elected or acting as a member of the school board.
Filing your nomination
Nominations and endorsements must be submitted on the prescribed forms. The 2026 forms will be posted to this page once made available from the Province (approximately mid-April).
To file your nomination, you, or your agent must submit the following, in-person at the Clerk’s Office during the nomination period:
- Nomination Paper – Form 1
- 25 endorsement signatures the prescribed Endorsement of Nomination – Form 2
- A declaration of qualification in the prescribed form, signed by the person being nominated.
- Satisfactory identification demonstrating proof of identity and qualifying address
- Payment of the nomination filing fee ($200 for Mayor, $100 for all other offices)