The Federal Court of Canada has dismissed a request to overturn the most recent election at Manitoba’s most populous First Nation even though its chief and one of its councillors interfered with the operations of an advance poll.
In a decision issued Thursday, Justice Ann Marie McDonald declined a request by former Peguis chief Glenn Hudson to set aside the results of the April 6, 2023, election at Peguis First Nation, a Cree and Anishinaabe First Nation in Manitoba’s Interlake region with 12,000 members living on and off reserve.
In that election, Hudson lost his position as chief to Stan Bird by a margin 440 votes. He sought to set aside the result —936 votes for Bird, 496 for Hudson — on the basis a group of people in support of Bird interfered with an advance poll held at Peguis on March, 28, 2023.
In court in July, Hudson argued Bird and Coun. Kelvin Wilson were present at the advance poll when a group of people intimidated employees with OneFeather Mobile Technologies, a company contracted to serve as the election officer in Peguis.
This resulted in OneFeather losing custody of the ballot box, which was later destroyed, resulting in the cancellation of 178 votes.
OneFeather resigned as election officer, which led to Winnipeg contractor Boom Done Next stepping in to serve as election officer.
Justice McDonald concluded “the events at the advance poll constituted direct interference” with the election officer and amounted to a contravention of the First Nations Election Act.
“However, the evidence does not support a finding that those events impacted the ability of community members to vote on election day on April 6, 2023,” McDonald concluded in her decision.
She nonetheless issued a rebuke to Wilson and Bird.
“The conduct of Mr. Wilson and Mr. Bird on March 28 was disruptive, misguided, and ill conceived; but I am not satisfied on the balance of probabilities that there is evidence of fraud or corruption,” McDonald stated.
“That is not to say that the court condones their conduct — it was serious — and it was close to the line. The remedy of overturning the election results risks disenfranchising all members of Peguis First Nation.”
McDonald said the evidence did not allow her to grant a request by Hudson to bar Bird and Wilson from running for office in a future election. But as a result of their conduct at the advance poll, she declined to award them any costs, even though costs are usually awarded to the successful party in a civil case.
Hudson called the decision unacceptable.
“What message does that send to our youth in our First Nation community?” he said Thursday in a telephone interview.
“These types of findings would certainly not be acceptable in a non-First Nation community. Like if that happened in the City of Winnipeg, in Tuxedo, people would be crying foul and there would have been a re-election.”
Hudson said he is not certain whether he will appeal the decision. He also said he is unsure whether he will run for chief in a future Peguis election.
Hudson also called on Chief Bird and Coun. Wilson to resign.
In an interview at a Peguis office in Winnipeg, Bird said he welcomed the court’s decision.
He said his actions at the advance poll in 2023 were taken “to protect the integrity of the election” by preventing a ballot box from leaving Peguis.
Wilson echoed that assertion.
“The way I see it, I wasn’t taking a risk for myself. I was taking a risk for the whole community,” he said.
Bird said he and his council colleagues now have a task ahead of them.
“We’ll be having discussions moving forward just trying reassure our members that elections moving forward will be fair,” he said.
The next election in Peguis is slated for 2026.