Mohawk Council of Kanesatake v. Drew

Decided: 2026-09-28. Docket: T-3143-25. Citation: 2026 FC 1203 (CanLII). Indigenous peoples — First Nation elections — Custom election code — Mohawks of Kanesatake Custom Electoral Code adopted by referendum — Self-government and application of the community’s law — Election cancelled on the eve of voting day — Community governance vacuum to be avoided — New election ordered under the existing Code — Application for judicial review granted | Administrative law — Judicial review — Reasonableness — Whether it was unreasonable for the Chief Electoral Officer to cancel the election — No provision of the Code allowing cancellation or suspension — Role is to apply the law, not to make the law — Stopping an election one day before voting day undermines integrity — Cancellation found unreasonable