(JENNIFER STAHN / iNFOnews.ca)

Former BC United candidates have to wade through the legalese of an unprepared Election Act to figure out what to do with their campaign funds.

BC United surprised the province when party leader Kevin Falcon suspended its campaign last week.

The Election Act is prepared for what to do with campaign funds when a party unregisters, or dissolves, but BC United is still a registered party. The Election Act doesn’t specify what to do in the case of a campaign suspension.

Elections BC said it’s helping candidates navigate the complicated laws around campaign funds.

“The act speaks to parties deregistering completely, but that's a separate process, and I don't think BC United said that they were intending to do that. They've said that they're suspending their campaign, which is different,” Andrew Watson with Elections BC said.

What happens to candidates' funds relies on what they plan to do now that their party is no longer in the running, he said.

READ MORE: Okanagan candidates try to navigate election campaign after BC United drops out

“Candidates have separate campaigns under the act,” Watson said. “Parties could choose not to endorse an individual or withdraw an endorsement, but it is actually up to the candidate themselves to withdraw their candidacy if they've already submitted their papers.”

Candidates will still have access to the funds they raised on their own if they decide to continue the race independently or with a different party, but they don’t have access to any funding controlled by BC United, he said. If a candidate chooses to drop out what happens to their funding would be dependent on how the money was raised. 

“I would encourage any candidates in this situation to make sure they reach out to Elections BC to discuss their specific circumstances, as there can be quite a bit of nuance around the financing rules under the Election Act,” Watson said.

Elections BC is preparing a statement regarding campaign finances, and other legal questions. 

“We want to make sure that the public is getting good information on these developments. A lot of specific information is getting worked out as these changes come to our attention,” he said. 

West Kelowna city councillor and former BC United candidate Stephen Johnston said he's waiting for a response from Elections BC.

“I spoke to Elections BC. I left a message last Thursday, I called probably six times since then and I finally got in contact with someone who could sort of help me today,” he said. “By help I mean I gave them the questions about the funding and financing that I had and asked for documentation to be sent on that and they said they were working on it but hadn’t sent it over yet.”

READ MORE: Former Vernon councillor's BC Conservative party may finally have chance at government

Johnston didn't receive money from BC United; his funding was raised in his riding with help from his riding association.

“This is all quite unprecedented and I think even Elections BC is figuring out how to sort it all out from here,” he said.

Now that he's a candidate without a party, he's waiting to hear from either the BC Conservatives or the BC NDP. Until then, he isn’t sure what his plan is, and he doesn’t know what exactly will happen to his campaign funds.

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