Daniel MacIsaac
Northern News Services

NNSL (May 24/99) - With the government set to consult the communities on electoral boundaries, the date for the next territorial election and the fate of the current legislature are more up in the air than ever.

MLA Roy Erasmus said Thursday that the government operations committee has decided to go to the communities for feedback on Bill 15.

Sparked by the NWT Supreme Court ruling earlier this year in the Friends of Democracy case that demanded changes in the NWT's system of electoral boundaries, the bill proposes adding five seats to the legislature -- three for Yellowknife and one each for Hay River and Inuvik.

But the Western NWT Aboriginal Summit argues the court ruling infringes on Aboriginal rights and will apply to appeal the ruling on June 15.

Erasmus said Bill 15 will move ahead in the meantime.

"We can't wait until the end of the appeal process," he said, "simply because by the time it's over it could be well into July -- because a lot of times when an appeal is heard in a very important case, it takes a long time to come back with a decision."

Erasmus said time is also running out for the Government Operations Committee, which must be ready to make its recommendations to cabinet by July 23. The government then has until Sept. 1 to comply with the Supreme Court ruling.

"The government could simply take the bill into the house and pass it, so we have to have all our work done by July 23," he said.

As Elections Officer David Hamilton confirmed Thursday, the appeal process and the bill debate has direct bearing on the upcoming election -- originally slated for Oct. 6.

"If the government doesn't decide the boundaries issue until the deadline of Sept. 1, they will not get their election until March or April," he said.

Hamilton said even though he can reduce the usual six-months waiting period between any changes in the law and the election date, a winter election is unlikely. The NWT's harsh climate means enumeration and elections typically don't take place in winter and Hamilton said time will also be required to let the voters know what legislative changes have taken place.

"There's a good time to do enumeration and a bad time," he said. "There has to be an informed electorate out there -- and we have to make sure the voters get the proper information."

While even the idea of an election a year from now has been raised, most observers say a spring vote is likely.