Withdrawing a board candidacy at a condo general meeting in Quebec

Short answer. Before the vote, a candidate can withdraw whenever they like: nobody becomes a board member without having accepted. Elected without wanting it, they can decline the seat. Once the seat is accepted, leaving means resigning, and you tell the syndicate. In all three cases, what prevents an argument six months later is minutes that say who stood, who withdrew, and when.

Three seats, four names, and a raised hand

The annual meeting reaches the item "election of the board". Three seats, four names. Just as the vote is about to start, a neighbour raises her hand: she has thought it over and is no longer running. The chair looks at the secretary. Do the ballots need redoing? And what if she had been elected before changing her mind?

This question was asked almost word for word in a co-owners' group this summer. The answer depends on when the person pulls out.

Before the vote, withdrawing is free

A candidacy commits no one until the room has voted. The Civil Code is clear on one point: no one may be designated as a director without their express consent (art. 338 C.C.Q.). A candidate who withdraws is withdrawing that consent, and the meeting can no longer elect them.

In practice, the chair announces the withdrawal, the secretary notes it with the time, and the vote goes ahead on the remaining names. If the ballots are already printed, strike the name out in front of everyone. What matters is that nobody votes for her without knowing.

If there are now as many candidates as seats, or fewer, open the by-laws of the immovable. They set the number of board members and how they are appointed or replaced (art. 1084 C.C.Q.), so they say whether you still hold a vote.

Elected without wanting it

The case that raises the most questions: an absent co-owner is nominated by a well-meaning neighbour, and wins. Or a hesitant candidate wins and hears the result at the same time as the room.

The Code does not describe this moment. But since express consent is a condition, the most cautious reading is this: someone who never accepted can decline the seat, and declining is not a resignation. The seat is simply still open.

Two habits prevent the situation. Don't nominate someone who is absent without their written agreement, dated before the meeting. And after each election, ask out loud: "Do you accept the seat?" The answer goes into the minutes.

If someone declines, the election is still on the agenda: the room can vote again among the other candidates. Otherwise, the by-laws say how the seat will be filled.

Once on the board, it is a resignation

After accepting, you are no longer withdrawing a candidacy: you are resigning. A board member acts as the syndicate's mandatary, and a mandatary can renounce the mandate by notifying the syndicate (art. 2178 C.C.Q.). An email or a letter to the board is enough, with a copy for the register.

Resigning is a right, with one limit. Someone who leaves without a serious reason, at a moment when the departure harms the syndicate, must make good the injury caused. Walking away the night before a works contract is signed, when nobody else knows the file, is exactly what to avoid.

Resigning does not close everything at once. Files in progress and bank access still have to be handed over, and you remain liable for the decisions taken while you sat, unless you had your dissent recorded in the minutes. The handover follows the same list as a change of board.

When the board empties out

A departure does not stop the board, unless your by-laws say otherwise: the remaining board members keep acting. Even if there are no longer enough of them to reach the board's quorum, they can convene a meeting to fill the seats.

The small condo with three board members is the most exposed. Two resignations in the same week, and the person left carries everything. Call the meeting without waiting. If nobody agrees to sit, a co-owner can ask the court to appoint a board member.

What the minutes should say

A contested election almost always comes down to the minutes. A co-owner who believes the votes were miscounted has 90 days after the meeting to ask the court to annul the decision (art. 1103 C.C.Q.). So that nobody has to rebuild the evening from memory, record:

• each candidacy, and who nominated it;
• each withdrawal, and whether it came before or after the vote;
• each candidate's result in votes, not in raised hands;
• the acceptance of those elected, and the written agreement of those who were absent.

Votes are weighted by each unit's voting share, like every other majority in a condo. The AGM agenda template already includes the election item.

What your board can do this week

1. Look up, in the by-laws of the immovable, the number of board members, the length of the term and how someone is replaced.
2. Ask candidates who won't be there for a written, dated agreement.
3. Prepare the list of candidacies with a column for withdrawals and the time.
4. Add "Do you accept the seat?" to the running order, right after each election.
5. Check that no candidate has had unpaid common expenses for more than three months: they could not sit on the board (art. 1086 C.C.Q.).

What Kohabit does

In Kohabit's live general meeting, candidacies are declared during the meeting and withdrawn with one click. A withdrawn name leaves the ballot, and votes are counted by unit, according to its voting share. If two candidates tie for the last seat, Kohabit does not decide: the meeting does, and you record it in the minutes. Co-owners following the meeting remotely vote from their personal link, without an account.

Frequently asked questions

Can a candidacy be withdrawn once the ballots have been handed out?

Yes. Nobody becomes a board member without having accepted. Announce the withdrawal, note the time in the minutes, and check that no ballot counts for that name.

Can an absent co-owner be elected to the board?

Yes, if they have agreed, ideally in writing before the meeting. Without that agreement, they can decline the seat, and it stays open.

Can a board member resign whenever they want?

Yes, by notifying the syndicate, ideally in writing. Someone who leaves without a serious reason, at a moment when it harms the syndicate, may have to make good the injury. They remain liable for decisions taken while they sat.

Who replaces a board member who leaves?

The by-laws of the immovable say how. If they are silent, a co-owner can ask the court to appoint a board member. In the meantime, the board keeps acting with those who remain.

Sources

• Civil Code of Québec, arts. 321, 334, 337, 338 and 340 (administration of legal persons), on LégisQuébec
• Civil Code of Québec, arts. 1084, 1086 and 1103 (divided co-ownership), on LégisQuébec
• Civil Code of Québec, arts. 2178 and 2182 (end of the mandate), on LégisQuébec

Text of the articles consulted on September 17, 2026.

Written by Ben, founder of Kohabit and a volunteer board member of his own condo. This article is informational and does not replace legal advice: for a specific situation, consult a notary or a lawyer practising co-ownership law.