force. According to the 2021 census, the most common occupational categories in Qualicum Beach included: Sales and service (705 persons or 25.5%) Business, finance, and administration (515 persons or 18.6%) Trades, transport, and equipment operators (485 persons or 17.5%) Education, law and social, community and government services (300 persons or 10.8%) Health (255 persons or 9.2%) Natural and applied sciences (210 persons or 7.6%) Cultural or Ethnic Background According to the 2021 census, the ethnic or cultural origin of citizens in Qualicum Beach included: English (3,315 persons or 37.8%) Irish (1,955 persons or 22.3%) Scottish (2,115 persons or 24.1%) German (1,040 persons or 11.9%) French (770 persons or 8.8%) Canadian (735 persons or 8.4%) Ukrainian (515 persons or 5.9%) Dutch (415 persons or 4.7%) Religion According to the 2021 census, religious groups in Qualicum Beach included: Irreligion (4,615 persons or 52.6%) Christianity (4,015 persons or 45.7%) Judaism (30 persons or 0.3%) Buddhism (20 persons or 0.2%) Islam (20 persons or 0.2%) Other (65 persons or 0.7%) Politics and government Municipal government of the Town of Qualicum Beach has a council-manager form of government. It is headed by a mayor (who also represents Qualicum Beach on the governing board of the Regional District of Nanaimo) and a four-member council. These positions are filled by at-large elections every four years, as provided by British Columbia law. As of October 2022, the current mayor of Qualicum Beach is Teunis Westbroek. Voter turnout in the 2022 election was 52.53%. School board trustees, for representation on School District 69 Qualicum, are also elected by residents of the town, the City of Parksville and the surrounding area. The town funds a volunteer fire department, which serves the town and nearby rural communities. The town has a local ambulance station. The nearest full hospital is Nanaimo Regional General Hospital in Nanaimo. Qualicum Beach is part of the Parksville-Qualicum provincial electoral district, represented by Adam Walker of the NDP in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. Federally, Qualicum Beach, in the Courtenay—Alberni riding, is represented in the House of Commons of Canada by NDP Member of Parliament Gord Johns, who was first elected in 2015. Transportation Highway 19A, runs the length of the town along the shoreline of the Strait of Georgia. Highway 19 includes a junction with Highway 4, which runs through Cathedral Grove to Port Alberni and Tofino, Ucluelet, Bamfield and the Pacific Rim National Park