Minority Coalition Parliaments

As one of the 'leaders' trying to become our next prime minister shows his true colours by spouting lies and false information I urge those of you who have yet to vote to be very careful what you wish for, or more correctly who you vote for. I will not tell you who to support but will repeat my belief that it should be ABC if for no other reason than the recent false information spread by said conservative 'leader'.


Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, probably the most ethical MP in the HoC recently corrected Mr Scheer as have numerous academics who have knowledge of the subject.
She said Scheer is knowingly "misleading" Canadians about the country's parliamentary traditions.
"The convention is quite the opposite of what Mr. Scheer is telling people. I'm not advocating it. I'm explaining what the rules are. The convention is the party that held power before the election has first crack at seeing if they can hold the confidence of the House ... Mr. Trudeau, gets first crack at it," she said. "We elect 338 MPs and they have a right to decide who should form government at the end of an election."
In Canada's system of Westminster parliamentary democracy, the prime minister and the cabinet must answer to the House of Commons and they must enjoy the support and the confidence of a majority of the members of the chamber to remain in office.

It is instructive to examine the recent history of the New Zealand Parliament where they have had stable minority governments since 1996 when they switched to a Mixed Member system of electing their government.

They have in fact had a coalition (there is that word that our current leaders of all stripes have been studiously avoiding) government of one sort or another continuously ever since. For those readers who are not familiar with the NZ parliamentary system I will simply say that it is a Westminster System based upon the UK tradition, the same as ours is, with the proviso that their native Māori population have had some reserved seats since the mid 1800s.

Seems like they are WAY ahead of us and both our parliamentarians and the general population should be taking note as this pivotal moment in our governance arrives.

A few more details of their system follow, will we ever adopt such a system …. not anytime soon the way things are going but I suspect that we are about to get a taste of coalition governance whether we are ready for it or not. Let the games begin.......

New Zealand Parliament https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_Parliament

Mixed-member proportional (MMP) era
45th Parliament	1996 election	Fourth National (in coalition)
46th Parliament	1999 election	Fifth Labour (in coalition)
47th Parliament	2002 election
48th Parliament	2005 election
49th Parliament	2008 election	Fifth National (in coalition)
50th Parliament	2011 election
51st Parliament	2014 election
52nd Parliament	2017 election	Sixth Labour (in coalition)

The New Zealand Parliament was established in 1854 and is one of the oldest continuously functioning legislatures in the world. The New Zealand Parliament is consciously modelled on the Westminster system of parliamentary representation, developed in the United Kingdom.

New Zealand had representatives of the indigenous population in its parliament from an early date. Reserved Māori seats were created in 1867 during the term of the 4th Parliament; Māori men aged 21 and over, whether or not they owned property, could vote to elect four Māori members of the House of Representatives

A member of Parliament is a member of the House of Representatives, which has a minimum of 120 members, elected at a general election for a three-year term. There are 70 electorate MPs, of which seven are elected only by Māori who have chosen to be registered on a separate Māori electoral roll. The remaining members are elected by proportional representation from published party lists.

Finally for those who may be still considering voting for a Conservative representative I offer the following links that highlight the mindset of such people as shown by past and current 'leaders' within those partys.

http://democracyunderfire.blogspot.com/search/label/Harpers%20History

http://ofl.ca/power-of-many-ford-tracker-pc-cuts-and-privatization-to-date/

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Advanced Polls are open.....

I will be driving the few miles to the polling location shortly to waste my time voting for a candidate who will not be elected, its more of a protest vote against the 'party' of the fellow who will almost certainly get in in this traditional conservative riding. I have nothing against the individual, or for that matter no great affection for any of the others, I dont know them, have never met them and know very little about them. Therein lays part of the problem with our system of governance, we hear much about the 'leaders' and their 'platforms' (aspirationial lies?), a little about the more high profile individuals and 'close' riding's but considerably less about our local candidates unless one attends an 'all candidates' forum if and when organized. It matters not anyway for even if elected the chances of 'your' MP having any great influence in any decisions is minimal, are they a member of the 'winning party', are the part of 'cabinet' within that party, how much influence do even cabinet members have upon the 'leader' and his inner circle of unelected advisors.

How many of us actually vote directly for the individual as opposed to the political party they represent (they supposedly represent us but.....) or indirectly for the leader of said party?

Many of us continue to mourn the failure to adopt a new voting system in Canada and I would hope that at some point that whole idea is revisited but the greatest danger I see with such change that I see is adopting a system that is worse than the one we have now. For now we are stuck with the system we have and it looks like it will bring us a minority government (which is almost certainly what any more proportional system would bring us regularly) the question then being can our elected representatives of all stripes work TOGETHER for the benefit of all Canadians or will they be so busy fighting each other that NOTHING gets done?

Me cynical, you better believe it, and getting more so daily as the BS gets deeper each news cycle.

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Long Hours & Many Miles

“The hours are long, the workload can be overwhelming. The people you work for don't always like you and, after four years, they can fire you without saying why.” so says the opening commentary in a recent article highlighting the retirement of some Mps this coming fall.

"I didn't realize just the amount of time it would take away from the family," said Rodger Cuzner (Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso). "That that was probably the greatest surprise, but it's one that comes with taking on the responsibility and taking on the job." Cuzner had a gruelling travel schedule: up at 4 a.m. on Mondays to catch a flight to Ottawa, midnight arrivals back home in Cape Breton at the end of the week, criss-crossing his rural riding on weekends to attend community events. "It's all-consuming," he said.

Retiring MP Brad Trost (Conservative, Saskatoon—University) who endured a similar weekly commute between Ottawa and Saskatoon, said he was surprised by the daily grind of parliamentary business. "I had the vision that there was going to be a lot of meetings. I just had no clue how many meetings there would be," said Trost. "We do meetings beyond meetings, and meetings about meetings here in Ottawa."

What struck me most I not so much the long hours and endless meeting required in legislature business by the job, that is perhaps a greater burden than many of us who are not involved first hand realize but after what appears to be long days of such activities for SOME Mps their week then is book-ended by traveling time to and from their home riding and family. From Cape Breton to Saskatoon to Kootenay to the Northwest Territories these MPs must put in many hours commuting back and forth to Ottawa where some of the fellow MPs are just a relativly short travel time away.

It strikes me that there is room for more use of virtual commuting where by distant representatives can attend meetings and even the proceedings in The House by teleconferencing, Sure there will be times when personal face to face meetings are necessary but surely given the way many world wide bushiness operate nowadays daily face to face meetings are more traditional than necessary? Many such meetings are already broadcast where such discussions are public and the technology exists to have private or semiprivate discussions in the virtual reality world, such accommodation would free up our MPs to be more responsive to and have a better understanding of their local populations concerns.

Perhaps by the time the renovations to the House of Commons are complete the whole place will be but a museum where tour guides can say “Once upon a time this was where MPs traveled hundreds of miles just to listen to the government and opposition argue about who said what to whoom.”

Just asking!

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Voting A B C

I'm voting ABC ….. Any But Conservative ! Whilst I have nothing against our local conservative MPP and actually liked our previous MPP of the same persuasion, one Bill Murdoch now retired after putting the local needs ahead of provincial politics for many years, the new 'leader' is something else.

Frankly the thought of Ford in control of our province scares the living shit out of me, I am firmly convinced that he will do and say anything to gain power, nothing he says can be taken at face value, his figures (what few he has provided) do not add up and he even makes Wynne look almost palatable!

That leaves some very difficult choices, if I was voting for the leaders it would be no choice and NDPs Horwath is way better than the other choices, yes I have some concerns with their former strong affiliation with the unions, who in my view have become far to powerful in influencing political decisions, but they are looking to be the best choice provincially. But we vote for our local candidate and such choice may or may not have much influence upon which party holds the reigns of power when its all done. So whilst I think that my choice will be my local NDP candidate much will depend upon who I perceive to have the best chance of unseating the current conservative MPP and if that looks like being the liberal candidate then so be it.

One of the problems up here in what the GTA crowd think of as the boonies is that finding out who here has the most support is next to impossible, unlike in the 'big city' it is doubtful if we we see any pre-vote poll results for our riding and so its a guessing game. Perhaps I will just have to flip a coin it makes just about as much sense as anything else when I am voting against an individual who is not even on my voters list.......

No wonder the turnout is generally only around 50% !

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Stark choices.....

 

In a blog dedicated to commentary on Canadian Democracy how can I avoid discussing the upcoming Ontario Provincial election and when doing so how can I avoid being highly partisan in my comments given the increasingly divisive commentary coming from some, if not all, participants? I am not sure that is possible but at least initially I will try and just highlight the dilemma that ALL voters face, not only in this election but in all elections held under our current method of selecting our 'representatives' !

In theory we vote for a local individual who we think will represent our views in whatever legislative body they are standing for, be it national, provincial, regional or even local. In practice however it is increasingly becoming more of a matter of selecting someone who in practice 'represents' the vested interests of a group of 'politicians' (I put that in quotes because that term covers a multitude of sins) who are more beholden to their 'party' than to those who elected them. This is not true of ALL 'politicians' or individuals, there are 'independents' out there but they are few and far between and have little chance of having any meaningful impact upon our legislative process.

Presumably if you are reading this you are at least somewhat interested in our Canadian Democracy and have some knowledge of the individuals standing for office but I wonder how many of us can name those local candidates who are not currently in office, sure we can probably name the 'leaders' who's names are now in the news (the unofficial election period being well under way here in Ontario)? At least the Cons, Libs and NDP may come to mind although the names of 'other' party leaders may well escape us, listening to the evening news one would think there are no others but both the Greens and the Libertarians have quite a few candidates nominated. The delema that faces us all is this, do we vote for the local individual based upon their own strenths, the party which they 'represent' (remember they actualy represent US) or the party platform as regurgitated by the 'leader' of said party which may or may not be instituted if elected? Sorry I have no advice in that regard, I am as conflicted as all the rest of the electorate!

As we are all aware there have been several attempts both provincially and nationally in recent times to make changes to or first past the post winner takes all voting system and whilst there is some movement on a local level the wider systems remain unchanged. The delema of needing a reasonable measure of consensus and compromise to come up with a better system using a system that is highly partisan will forever remain and thus we are stuck with what we now have for the foreseeable future. We simply have to make our choices within the current choices presented, as stark and polarized as they may be!

It all make you want to have an option to say 'Non of the above' but that's not a choice given to us…... Oh, Wait …..

The NOTA Party campaigns for the 3Rs of Direct Democracy – Referendum, Recall and Real electoral and legislative Reforms that give voters control of politicians and parties. Candidates are accountable to their constituents and there are no central party policies or controls of elected MPPs beyond the binding Direct Democracy principles.

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Electronic Voting Not an Option.... yet.

Following the panel discussion on voter engagement of young people at Ryerson University recently backbench Liberal MPP Arthur Potts proposes that the voting age should be lowered two years, to 16. Scotland and Argentina are among the places where teenagers are allowed to cast ballots at that age, a time when many are taking on other responsibilities such as getting behind the wheel of a car,. “They can drive. They can work,” “This proposal is not a stretch from where we are today.” he said.
“I think they’re quite capable of making a reasoned choice for a political party,” he added, noting two high schools in his riding already hold mock elections to mirror real-world elections. “I can’t imagine a downside.”
Its hard to substantially disagree with him given that most of our youth are much more “connected” than us older folks were at that age and that its much easier nowadays to keep abreast of the various 'platforms'. This is not to say that there will be youth who will have no clue about the choices presented or wont care, but then that is no less true of many 'adults' where the traditional low turnout say much about our collective apathy around voting.

It is gradually getting better with a 50% turnout in the last Ontario election and an unprecedented near 70% 2015 federal election, whilst much of the uptick may have to do with the choices put before us and the quality of said candidates the inclusion of more youth may liven things up a little. Our younger voters will be much more comfortable with online voting than some us 'old fogies' but even this 70+ fellow uses online banking so it should be that much of a stretch to include online voting as a alternative to paper balloting.
According to the 2011 Elections Canada Survey of Electors, a majority of non-voters (57 percent), primarily those with Internet access at home, said they would have voted had it been possible to do so over the Internet using the Elections Canada website. The proportion was 10 percentage points higher among 18-to-24-year-olds. Of interest, the likelihood of non-voters saying that they would have voted online was higher among users of Facebook and similar applications.
The Study sheds additional light on electors' attitudes about Internet voting. Just under half of electors (49.1 percent) agree, somewhat (31.5 percent) or strongly (17.6 percent), that "Canadians should have the option to vote over the Internet in federal elections". This compares to 39.4 percent who disagree. A majority of electors said they would be likely to vote over the Internet if they could do so but 50.3 percent of them think voting over the Internet is "risky" while only 29.7 percent think it is not. I suspect that these figures have changed considerably since 2011. 

Ontario has  e Registration, where you can confirm, update or add your information to the Voters List “in just a few easy steps”. I have not tried that yet so cant verify how 'easy' it is but I do hope it is an improvement over some of the previous efforts in that regard, you will not however be able to vote electronically in any provincial or federal election that I know of. 

Elections Canada has a long, and I do mean a loooong, discussion on the advantages and disadvantages of moving towards a modernised voting system that includes electronic voting but it looks to be far distant dream at this point. What follows is a few clips from that document which seems to me to be mostly about why we cannot adopt such a system.

First, proponents cite convenience and the principle of voting at any time as a primary advantage. Research of online voters in municipal elections in Canada confirms that convenience is the leading reason for using the voting method, with 66% of those surveyed in the 2014 Ontario municipal elections noting that is why they voted online

(Finally) claims of youth engagement are often made since presumably young people are more technically inclined than previous cohorts of electors and are avid users of the internet. Studies find, however, that young or first time voters are more likely to vote by paper than online

Overall benefits such as convenience, access, greater voter privacy and reduction in spoiled ballots are well established. Modest improvements in turnout are also documented in a Canadian context, albeit for municipal elections, as well as the attraction of some non-voters to the voting method.

Opposition to online voting, or hesitancy to pursue it, is based on several principal barriers., they include....

The digital divide refers to having access to an internet connection, the quality of that connection and digital skills and knowledge. If an elector does not have access to the internet, or a poor quality/ slow connection, it is argued they will be less likely to vote online. …...it remains an issue in some more rural places in Canada, notably in northern areas and Indigenous communities........

Ballot secrecy is one of the top barriers to online voting implementation ….....any voting or counting process that does not adhere to the principle of ballot secrecy “cannot be considered democratic”

Authentication is another barrier that must be sufficiently overcome to adopt online voting. It refers to the process of confirming voters are who they say they are. The Auditability of voting must be maintained with online voting (can the votes as recorded be confirmed to be correct).

A list of common security threats associated with online voting systems that are not present in traditional paper voting at the polls where ballots are counted by hand is shown in a table included in the article and summerised here....Vote Selling and Coercion , Phishing , Automation bias , Denial of Service , Client-side Malware/Spyware , Server penetrations , Insider Influence , State-level Actors

Finally

Overall technical barriers such as authentication, verification, ballot secrecy and auditability need to be managed based on available technology and contextual circumstances, threats to security present additional challenges. In practice, the two principles of being able to verify votes are cast as intended and tallied as cast take place in three phases or steps whereby voters can check that their ballot was cast an intended, recorded as cast and tallied as cast:

1.    Cast as intended – at the time of voting, voters are provided with evidence, often in the form or a receipt or code, that their encrypted ballot reflects their voting choice.
2.    Recorded as cast – voters can check that the encrypted ballot has been included correctly by seeing the encrypted code they cast on a public list, which shows the encrypted votes that have been cast.
3.    Tallied as recorded – “any member of the public can check that all the published encrypted votes are correctly included in the tally, without knowing how any individual voted”.

There is the potential to make our voting system much easier and to encourage greater participation via electronic voting however the recent rushed disaster in attempting to use such a system to select a new Ontario Conservative leader has not improved the chances of using such for provincial or federal voting anytime soon!





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Democratic Renewal

Recently Liberal Premier Kathleen Wynne, Progressive Conservative interim leader Vic Fedeli, NDP Leader Andrea Horwath, and Green Leader Mike Schreiner recently gathered at Ryerson University to discuss - not to debate - the need for democratic renewal . Moderated by the Star’s Queen’s Park columnist, Martin Regg Cohn the forum focused on the urgent need to better engage young people.

In the last two elections, barely half of Ontarians bothered to cast a ballot — an embarrassing 48 per cent voted in 2011, and a dispiriting 51 per cent turned out in 2014.

They were the worst showings by civic no-shows in our democratic history. And far worse turnouts than in any other provincial or federal election ever.

The Green’s Schreiner told more than 300 people at the George Vari Engineering and Computing Centre

“Who do we blame for disengagement? I think the media, politicians, and the way we conduct politics has to share in some of the blame,”.“I am deeply concerned about our civil discourse in terms of how we refer to voters. Think about some of the media tropes that are out there,” “We talk about ‘taxpayers’ a lot as if we’re only ‘taxpayers,’ or we talk as if voters are there to harvest votes, or that we’re consumers of government services, rather than actually talking about people as citizens.” interim leader Vic Fedeli said it’s no wonder young people don’t vote because the electoral process is so antiquated.

Progressive Conservative interim leader Vic Fedeli said it’s no wonder young people don’t vote because the electoral process is so antiquated.

“You have to get to a voting place. You’re either going to take transit or drive a car and park or get there somehow, walk. You’re going to go to a building you’ve probably never been to before. You’re going to get in a line with people you’ve never met before — a long line in some cases — you’re going to finally get up there, bring out paper ID and register,” he said. “You’re going to be handed a ballot. You’ll get in a cardboard box and there’s a pencil and you’re going to fill out your ballot and hand it to somebody who is going to put it in another box,” “The way you actually work is not reflected in the way our government system has you voting. You’re not reflected in that. You work with tablets and electronic voting. The way you work is completely different than the way our system is set up.”

An aside here.... as I have said on these pages before I am no great fan of the 'Conservative' mindset, at least as it currently exists in both Federal and Ontario politics. I am however somewhat disappointed that Mr Fedeli is only 'interim leader' for he seems to be the only one of those currently involved in the conservative leadership fiasco with the experience and skills to actually move the party forward in a positive way. Perhaps the current total cfk will bring about a positive change eventually but I an not holding my breath!

Moving on......

Wagging our fingers won’t help. Making people feel guilty won’t make them vote.

What will it take to revive the democratic impulse at a time when the pulse is especially weak? The polling by Campaign Research provides interesting clues:

• The biggest single reason people don’t vote — cited by more than one-third of all Ontarians — is they believe they can’t, because they are somehow not registered. This finding cries out for targeted information from the media, electoral authorities, political parties, and activist groups.
  

• Mandatory voting is the law in Australia, but remains a long shot here — Ontarians are evenly split on fines for those who don’t cast ballots. Nearly two-thirds of those born outside Canada support compulsory voting, their sense of civic duty and democratic engagement could be harnessed with greater outreach.
  

• Better campaign platforms and information are also the top reasons cited by voters for what would make them more likely to participate. Bottom of the list: electoral reform, cited by only 1 per cent in the survey.

My own thoughts on this as I eye up the choices that will soon be presented to us here in Ontario is that perhaps if we had a better selection of both candidates and party platforms (not that you can believe anything they say during an election period) then perhaps more folks would bother to make a choice! As always the delema of whether to vote for the individual, the party they run under or the platform that party presents further adds to the difficulty, often leading to the wish for a 'Non of the above' choice at the ballot box. Certainly making sure our youth and more recent citizens are aware of their voting rights and how to register and vote as well as a much simpler and less archaic system would also go a long way to improve the turnout.

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Last Chance .........

Tomorrow will be the last chance to have your say as to who you want to represent you in parliament and, although we currently vote for individuals, this election has been all about which party is best positioned to replace the Harper Regime, With a minority government very much a probability we can only hope that whichever party get the most seats will work with ALL MPs to undo some of the antidemocratic practices that the Conservative have made common practice, and that opposition MPs from other partys put aside partisan games to ensure that this happens. That the remaining conservatives in both the House and the Senate will mostly be obstructionists in this regard is a given so its even more important that the remaining MPs work together for the good of Canada.


Even this faint hope will disappear if Harper get back in, and if the Libs and the NDP are to be believed will result in a 'hung parliament' that does NOT have the confidence of the majority and given Harpers past performance would result in a 'constitutional crisis'!
So if you have not voted already, which almost 4 million citizens have done, then please ensure that you do get out and vote and please vote for change......
And do not forger that the millions being spend on those almost continuous adverts, telling us that if you vote for anyone but Harper yes men the world will end, will be reimbursed at around 60% from the taxpayers pocket, the upper limit of which has basically doubled due to the long election and Con legislation! So much for lower taxes eh.
If you are reading this you have no doubt already decided that Harper and his 'election team' are a bunch of lieing, scheming, anti democratic, would be dictators with no morals and who will do and say ANYTHING to retain power, so I am preaching to the converted but I will leave you with these thoughts from Kibycairo who sums up my thoughts with remarkable accuracy.....


“Some on the left might argue that the Liberal Party is just a 'kinder gentler' group that is going to screw the weak and the vulnerable. And there is a sense in which that is true. But here's the thing - when you eliminate the rule of law (as Harper is doing), when you eliminate the ability for people to protect themselves against the arbitrary power of government (as Harper is doing), when you make the House of Commons entirely unaccountable (as Harper has done), when you gut Elections Canada and make Election Fraud de facto legal (which Harper is doing), when you destroy the freedom of information system (as Harper has done), when muzzle scientists and eliminate fact-based policy efforts, when you do all these things then it really doesn't matter what you believe because you really can't change anything. And this is the trap that Harper represents..............


The Liberals may not become the progressive government many of us were hoping for, but HarperCons are a threat to the very system itself, to a system in which we can meaningfully fight for justice and equality. Harper represents a dark, American-like (Pottersville) sort of future where the justice system is a pawn of the government, where the police and the Army are an extension of a political party, where racism is institutionalized, where guns are everywhere, where the Charter of Rights is distant memory, and eduction and healthcare is reserved for the rich. Justin Trudeau may not be a progressive wonder-boy, but I will take a man and a party that represents the possibility of change than one who represents a dark, goose-stepping future any day of the week.
Amen to that!




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Be Prepared, Voter Identification

Much has been made of late of the removal of the voter card as a piece of identification, there was even a court case in Ontario to challenge the provision which was rejected. Frankly I believe the rhetoric that this change will disenfranchise some voters is a little overdone, it is the assumption that if you have received a card that’s all you need to vote that is the problem. You still need to positively identify yourself by other means, if you received the card by mail it is highly improbable that you don’t have some kind of addressed mail / bills etc that is acceptable as proof of residence.


A far greater impediment to voting, particularly in rural Canada, is that if the address on your drivers licence or other ID does not match that on the voters list (and thus you card if you got one) you may have difficulty. If you drivers licence still says RR something but the voters list says 123456 This Road then you could have a problem if you leave things to voting day. Even errors in the list that puts you to the other side of the street and thus sends you to a different poll location can really throw a spanner in the works, you MUST be registered with Elections Canada to vote. On voting day you MUST vote at the right polling station, at advanced polls and at Elections Canada offices prior to that there is much more flexibility.


There are several ways to both check and correct such errors and it is not unreasonable to ask voters to do so if they suspect the voter list is incorrect, or they have moved recently, they are just now old enough to vote or they are away at school for an extended period. The thing is they must be aware that they need to do so and that is what this post is about.


The Elections Canada web site detailing all the information required was updated in late June and clearly answers just about every question you may have but there are a few wrinkles that are not immediately obvious and not generally included in the discussions about who can and cannot vote and what they need to know to do so. I will try and cover some of those things here but please check the imbedded links for the details.

1. Your mailing address and your residential address are not necessary the same, you may use either one but your ID must match the address on the voters list (and thus the voters card). Your drivers licence with a different address can be used to establish you identity but you then need a separate piece of approved documentation to establish your address. http://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=vot&dir=ids&document=index&lang=e
   

2. If you do not receive a card, the address does not match the ID that you can provide, you are going to be away from home either temporarily or longer, you just have to make some arrangements ahead of time. This is not unreasonable, if you want to vote and have a say in Canada's future get off your arse and make sure you can do so. Here is how! http://www.elections.ca/content2.aspx?section=id&document=index&lang=e
   

Elections Canada sends a voter information card by mail to each registered voter. It should arrive between September 28 and October 2. The voter information card gives the hours and address of your advance polling place, election day polling place and local Elections Canada office.
You may correct the Elections Canada voter listings to agree with you ID, (AND vote by special ballot whilst doing so), by visiting any of 400 Elections Canada offices before the deadline of Tuesday, October 13 at 6:00 p.m. (local time). Offices are open Monday to Friday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Bring your proof of identity and address. You can vote by mail but need to apply for a special ballot voting kit as soon as possible, to allow time for your voting kit to reach you and for your marked ballot to reach Elections Canada by election day.
The deadline to apply to vote by mail is Tuesday, October 13 at 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time for anyone applying online or sending their application to Elections Canada in Ottawa.
You may vote by special ballot at any Elections Canada office at any time prior to the election, be sure to have the name and correct spelling of your preferred candidates name when doing so as the 'special ballot' is not preprinted with the candidates name and the office may not have an up to date list!
You can find the Elections Canada office nearest you on the internet or call Election Canada at 1-800-463-6868
When you vote at an Elections Canada office or by mail, you must use a special ballot voting kit.
In all cases, the elector must have a civic address for his or her place of ordinary residence in Canada, for electoral purposes. The elector's vote will be counted for that electoral district.


If you're not sure what address E.C. has on file, check your voter registration here.
If you need more help with voter registration, contact them here.

3. If you are unable to probuce any ID showing your current address you may take an oath
   Show two pieces of ID with your name and have someone who knows you attest to your address. This person must show proof of his or her identity and address, be registered in the same polling division, and can only attest for only one person. The identity of a person without documentation cannot be vouched for only his or her civic address!
   

Those living in residence or in a home with a roommate off campus may have difficulty because some of the bills may not be in their name. In situations like that students can get a letter of  confirmation of residence from their student residence. The same could apply for someone staying in a shelter or senior’s residence or living on reserve. These forms can be found online at www.elections.ca or by visiting a local election office.

UPDATE
I am told by someone who recently took poll clerk training that should you turn up at a poll with address information that does not match the listings or when you are not on the list then you will NOT be turned away but added to the list and asked to swear that you have not voted elsewhere.


Remember under the new (un)Fair Elections Act, Elections Canada can tell you where and how to vote but cannot advertise or otherwise encourage you, or our under represented youth or native population, to get out to vote. So bloggers let us take up the challenge and do all we can to get everyone to have their say on Canada's future.


Election date is Oct 19^th

NOTE For local information about offices and candidates in Bruce-Grey Owen Sound please see the copy of this post at The Rural Canadian Support Democracy - Recommend this Post at Progressive Bloggers

Harpoon for Youth

We all know that getting our younger voters out is even more important this time than ever before and that it is hard to get many of them engaged in the cluster fk we laughingly call democracy. Who can blame them, even those of us who are 'engaged' are getting more and more disgusted with the shenanigans our 'government' thinks is acceptable, with more and more revelations coming daily. There is however a somewhat tongue in cheek site that provides information necessary to make an informed decision that may make it easier for 'the younger crowd' to absorb some of the necessary facts.


Harpoon2015 is “an eclectic bunch of comedy lovers, heartwarmingly united by disgust for our exceptionally bad overlord.” They say that “Our members include twentysomethings with hangovers, embittered cartoonists, nicely-dressed business people, Order of Canada recipients, one disgruntled ad exec, a lawyer, an environmentalist, a craft brewer, and a Good Wife addict — none of whom have anything in common, except wanting to get more people fired up about Canadian politics…and Harper pied in the face.
This part we’re serious about. Harpoon is a strictly non-partisan campaign. We are not, and will never be, affiliated with or financially supported by any political party. People from any political party or background are welcome to participate and share. While we don’t pretend to like Harper, we’re passionate advocates for civic engagement, and we encourage every Canadian — especially young ones — to hit the ballot box and vote for whoever they want. Even if he does have the most terrifying hairpiece* of all time.
*We are internally divided on whether his hair is, in fact, a hairpiece.”

Their site divides the information into a number of topics such as Democracy, Secrecy, Science etc etc, with short and to the point facts about the Harper Regimes actions within those topics. I highly recommend it and encourage readers to share the links, particularly with their sons, daughters and younger friends. Lets have everybody not only vote, but vote knowledgeably.






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BGOS Greens AGM

The following is presented as a service to my local Greens

The Annual General Meeting of the Bruce-Grey Owen Sound Green Party of Canada Electoral District Association will be held Thursday, May 21, 2015 at 7:00 pm at the Williamsford Mill Book Store & Cafe, 316070 Highway 6, Williamsford, ON.

A new executive is elected at the AGM. Nominations will be taken from the floor for the positions of President (CEO), Chief Financial Officer and other executive positions. The meeting is open to all Green supporters and to the general public. Green Party of Canada memberships will be available and volunteers with Green thoughts are urgently needed to support the party through the coming election and beyond.

For more information: http://www.bgosgreens.ca/
---------------------

I am reliably informed that they are having difficulty in finding individuals willing to stand on the Executive which perhaps highlights how small a percentage of voters actually join and get involved in the decision making process within political parties. Even one like the Greens where all members can impact policy issues and party governance directly by online voting upon such issues appear to have low participation at the grass roots level.


Elections Canada requires that an Electoral District Association register its CEO and CFO by May 31^st each year, failure to do so results in de-registration of the EDA, the process for registration of a new EDA is somewhat complicated and time consuming so it is important for local associations to get the information to Elections Canada before the end of this month.


Whilst some parties in some areas do better than others I have always thought that communicating information about their activities and retaining members BETWEEN election periods seems to be one of the difficulties in getting folks to become involved at election time. Whilst the primary objective of an EDA is to select and support a candidate for that area they must have a core group willing and able to identify folks to assist, be it with money or time, during said election period. It is often difficult to keep folks motivated and actively involved over the four years where their supportive role takes a back seat to more mundane activities. Those that are more visible over this period and are able to keep their parties local activities and views before the public on a regular basis will probably have more success than those who fade into the background between elections.


Why not check out your local District Association.


The BGOS Greens web site can be found here. BGOS Greens


A list of all contact information for GPC district Associations can be found here.




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Samara’s Democracy 360 Report

Samara, the Canadian Democracy Measurement folks have just released their latest report on the state of our democracy and its not good! This is no surprise to those of us who have been taking notice but with generally 40% or less giving any time to even discuss political issues with anybody (online or in person) it would seem that the majority don’t even care.


The following are a few extracts from their report “Samara’s Democracy 360, a report card on the state of Canada’s democracy” (260K PDF)


“Only 31% of Canadians believe politics affects them every day.
Only 37% give any time or resources to formal political activities between elections.
A surprising number (39%) say they haven’t had a single political conversation—online or offline—in a year-long period. With a federal voter turnout of 61%, Canada ranks in the bottom fifth among democracies, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development”


“Canadians gave MPs failing grades in all but one area: representing their parties’ views (57%). This percentage is notably higher than the grades they received for representing constituents (45%) or holding government to account (42%).they reserve their lowest marks for parties’ performance in reaching out to Canadians to hear their views (42%).
Only 40% of Canadians report that they trust MPs to do what is right and only 42% of Canadians place some trust in political parties.
Canadians give MPs and political parties failing grades on nearly all their responsibilities, ranging from reaching out to citizens to their work in Parliament. Overall, Canadians feel MPs do a better job representing the views of the party than
they do representing their constituents....... only 40% of Canadians report that they
trust their MPs to do what is right. Political parties fare no better: only 42% of Canadians report trusting them.”


“Even for a very accessible form of participation—talking about politics both online or in person—a large number of Canadians (39%) report never having had a single political conversation in a year-long period.
Particularly troublesome is that this declining turnout is driven almost entirely by young Canadians (aged 18 to 24), who vote at almost half the rate (39%) as Canadians aged 65 to 74 (75%)”


“MPs have the tools to speak to Canadians and they use them, but whether they do so successfully is more difficult to ascertain; Canadians’ low trust levels suggest there is room for improvement. For example, when social media is used more often to broadcast a message, rather than gather input or exchange views, it misses a chance to engage.”
In earlier interviews Samara says that “MPs also report being stymied by their own parties, which prevents them from doing the job they initially sought. It’s clear that in order to restore the trust of those who elect them, party leaders and MPs should work
towards more balanced relationships—relationships that enable MPs to better fulfill their jobs as representatives.”


And therein lays the biggest problem in my opinion, until such time as our 'representatives' can actually represent US not their party then democracy will continue its downward slide. In their report Samara puts it this way:-


“Canada’s democracy is now like a slow leak when it rains. It’s easy to
ignore a pesky leak, but if left until the damage becomes severe or a
storm rages, the problem will become more difficult and expensive to
correct.”
Perhaps more than difficult but all but impossible once the roof falls in, and particularly troubling with the Harper Regime constantly picking at the hole and increasing the leak!

If there is one thing we can take away from this report it is that getting the younger citizen to "get involoved", if only to the point of voting, is essential for the survival of our democracy. Unfortunatly it is these young folk who will reap the results of their disinterest in what remains of our country's democratic system.

If you have not done so already I urge you to read Samara's various reports going back several years, its scary stuff but their objective research and resulting conclusions paint a clear picture of where our democracy is headed. You may wish to view some of my earlier posts featuring their work here.


Also see The Democracy 360 Numbers, a companion to the report, describing all 23 indicators of a healthy representative democracy, offering a rich resource of data for media and any interested citizens.






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Election Stories

With the Ontario election now history and a slight uptick in the voter turn out I will relate a few of the problems various voters have encountered whilst trying to vote in an effort to make both the voters and those that run the system aware of impediments to voting during said election. Most of these stories are specific to rural areas and related to poll location and rural addressing issues, it may be that in urban areas such things are not such a problem and it would seem that Elections Ontario either is unaware of such problems or considers rural voters as less important than their urban counterparts. Non of the stories are new to the 2014 election but have been ongoing throughout the last several Ontario elections, some are relevant to the federal electoral system also.


Let us first look at a couple of lads who were first time voters and who lived across the road from each other one of whom had found out where to vote and took his buddy along to also vote. Trouble was that his buddy was to vote at a different poll, not one across the room or even a couple of blocks away but 8 or 10 miles away. These lads had already travelled 10 or 12 miles from their home to get to the poll and unfortunately it being 8.45pm had no chance of getting to the other poll location before closing. Not a good first time voting experience!


At the same poll a number of seniors some using walkers came to the poll location situated just a few houses away only to be told that they could not vote as their poll was in a village some 10 to 12 miles away. To add insult to injury the entire village where they lived was directed to the distant location despite there being more than enough room to accommodate more polls at their local hall. This issue is common to many rural polls and has been well documented in my personal blog during the previous election.


At an advanced poll a fellow came in to vote and pulled out his recently renewed drivers licence for identification only to find that the address did not match, his drivers licence still showed lot and concession instead of the now required road and fire number (rural equivalent of street number). Seems that the word has not reached licence renewal folk that lot and con is no longer a valid address!


At the same advanced poll a fellow came in to register and vote as no voter card was received, not a problem except that he had not moved in the last 10 years and had corrected his information before the last two elections and his information on the voters list was STILL not corrected on the list. Third time lucky perhaps?


A number of voters either declined their votes or deliberately spoiled their ballots. How do we know this? To decline a ballot the voter must hand the ballot back to the clerk and tell them they wish to decline, anyone nearby can hear and see this transaction. By the same token at locations where a tabulating machine is used (as in most advanced ballots) the machine will reject an incorrectly filled out ballot, the voter must then tell the clerk that they want the vote processed as filled out. There is no 'Declined / None of the above' box on the ballots!


These are just a few of the 'difficulties' that I have been made aware of most of which in my view are not that hard to fix or at least make less of a problem. The addressing problems can only be corrected by keeping an up to date database which requires those moving to somehow get that data input into the system, how is that we must update our drivers licence immediately after moving but this does not filter down to voting lists and that rural addressing conventions are still not being observed despite Canada Post recently declaring that they will soon stop delivering rural mail unless it has the road and fire number on it.


Finally how is it that at advanced polls anyone from within that riding can vote at any poll but on voting day you MUST vote at a specific poll location? The major impediment here is that the voter lists are still being distributed to the polls in printed form and to wade through some 80,000 names on hundreds of loose leaf pages is a major chore, just ask an advanced poll clerk about that. At the very least the riding list should be on computer as a read only file with a search utility (the feds have done this at advanced polls) but should not updates and the fact that the citizen has voted not be instantly updated via computer? As it stands it takes 24 hours or more for the written changes to go to the district office, be entered and new printed lists to be produced and sent out to the advanced polls. If someone wanted to vote multiple times it would be relativity easy and whilst it would probably be picked up eventually and (presumably) the perpetrator taken to task, the votes themselves could not be cancelled as no vote is coupled with any particular voter.


Whilst so many of us are calling for election reform in the way in which our votes determine the composition of the legislatures, the way in which we actually cast our vote is at least as important if we wish more citizens to make their wishes known. Its a difficult thing to ensure that any system is not subject to manipulation by those who would 'cheat' but we must try and make it less of a chore and eliminate as many problems as possible so that ALL citizens can and will vote. In my opinion whilst paper ballots must still be an option the use of technology can only help with this despite the perhaps increased possibility of voter fraud and the difficulty of conducting a 'recount' in such situations.


I note that information as to where to vote and identification required was available on line or by telephone but for many folks who do not use the internet or were unaware that they had a problem until they went to vote it was too little too late. I wonder how many folks actually read the bulk mailing that went out right after the election was called and how many thought to take action when they did not receive a voter card. The above difficulties are not ALL the systems fault!

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Elections Ontario Struggling......

Elections Ontario is struggling to find enough staff to fill the positions required to process your vote, this is not a particular surprise to those who have worked the polls before, it always tough to find responsible folks available for a one day 12 to 14hr shift with no breaks! I am not sure how Elections Canada gets away with it but poll clerks and others who work the polls are expected to be at their station the entire time that the polls are open and then some must remain to count ballots or forfill other duties related to closing the polls and clean up. Still its a chance for retired folks, out of work youth (over 18) and others to make a little pocket money so if you are looking for a little boost to your pocket book give your local election office a call. At last check they are still looking for people for several positions at a variety of locations.


I do feel a little sorry for the head honchos at EO in that they can only do so much ahead of time to prepare for an election, particularly one that was not 'scheduled'! That said in chatting with one worker who has been involved with both EC and EO in recent years it is apparent that the top dogs have no idea of what the problems are on the front lines and it seems are not even interested in improving the system, the training, or the much vaunted 'making voting easy'. Once again (at least here in rural areas many voters must travel to locations that are considerably further than to the closest poll location to vote, last time it was put down to a lack of 'suitable' poll locations in rural communities, the greatest roadblock being that according to Ontario law all such places must be “handicap accessible”! I mean no disrespect to those with mobility problems but when the possibility of one or two such persons having difficulty accessing the poll location dis-accommodates hundreds of residents that must then drive out of their local area to vote I wonder how such 'accommodations' help with our already dismal turnout! I do note that those with or without disabilities can vote by 'special ballot' by calling EO and getting a mail in form sent to them.


The other thing that I have become aware of is the training is somewhat hit and miss, the trainers can hardy be faulted for not having a the answers as after all many of them have never been 'trainers' for EO and even those that trained them may well be temporary not previously experienced folks given that EO (and for that matter EC) do not have a vast reserve of staff just waiting for the next election to take place. The manuals that each Poll clerk, Advanced Poll clerk, poll supervisor etc get are quite extensive and specific as to how to check for identification, deal with special situations etc etc but less so on the actual minutiae of what the job entails. I many cases its learn by default and if the poll supervisor happens to be a 'newby' then it can be problematic. Bottom line remember that all these front line folks are 'temporary' employees and many of the have a couple of hours of (somewhat limited) training and are then dumped in the deep end. When things don’t go smoothy PLEASE have patience, its not their fault that you address doesn’t match or that you are not on the list and your problems will be resolved much quicker if you do not beat up on them.


As can be seen from the above the system is not perfect, nor will it ever be but much of the problems (both provincially and federally) seem to arise from determining identify and ensuring that you only vote once. Why then are we still running in the dark ages with poll clerks wading through hundreds of printed ( and out of date as soon as they are printed) pages with up to 80,000 voters names and addresses (in the case of advanced polls) to see if you are 'on the list'. Sorry we have been using computers for such things since the 70s and have had reliable internet and dedicated communication between computers for decades now, lets use it! For those who would say it can be hacked or gamed I would say that the lack of timely updating of updated vote registration leaves no less a risk of abuse and the ONLY folks who are going to do either are the rabid partisan party flacks who will always find a way to cheat, for the average voter it never enters his or her mind.
With some folks within walking distance of a poll location once again being forced to get in their car and drive some distance to another village to vote is it any wonder that voter turnout is expected to be low, its reached the point where as little as 15% of the citizens could have actually supported those who get in (40% of 40% who vote). If we can do our banking by internet, machine or phone the surely we can devise a national system to vote the same way for federal, provincial and municipal elections and even referendums on voting systems or tossing them all out!!





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Ontario Election = Identification & Vouching

With all the publicity around the Federal 'Fair' Elections Act and the issue of vouching it is important to know that for the Ontario Provincial Election VOUCHING IS NOT PERMITTED. You must have proper identification in order to vote, if you are not on the voters list, do not receive a registration card indicating the poll location or do not have identification with your name and municipal address on it you may have a problem.


If you DO have the registration card you just need the card that was mailed to you with your name and address on it and one piece of identification with your name on it which must match the name on the voters list. It is unclear if the address information must exactly match if your ID has an address on it however the address information is not required to be on the ID if you have your card, just your name matching the list. If you are on the list but dont have your registration card you may be asked to compete and sign a statutory declaration before voting.


If you DO NOT get a registration card or the information on it is incorrect then you must have the voters list corrected or updated before you can vote (which can be done your poll location on the day or at your returning office any time). You will then need one piece of identification with your correct name and address and will be required to sign a form swearing as to you identity and address.
IMPORTANT – Your ID must have a street address or FIRE NUMBER on it, rural residents with ID that shows lot & concession, post office box# or RR# should be aware that it is NOT ACCEPTABLE when swearing as to residence! On Election day if you are not on the list you must also be at the correct poll location for your address in order to be put on the list OR have previously visited a returning office or satellite office location and been put on the list. (You can vote anytime at said satellite revisions offices once you are put on the list so there is no need for a second outing!)


The Notice of Registration card (NRC) may NOT be used as proof of name; the NRC may be used as proof of residence ONLY. An elector must show a second piece of identification to prove name. For more on acceptable identification go here . All of the above remains unchanged from the last Provincial Election.


Advanced polls are open from May 31^st to June 6^th from 10am till 8pm but it has been reported that NOT ALL LOCATIONS WILL BE OPEN ALL OF THOSE DAYS check if yours is open before you go!


Elections Ontario has a comprehensive web site with all the information you need here.


Voting day is June 12th and polls are open from 9am to 9pm. Please VOTE!

• Ontario Liberal Party
  

• Ontario Progressive Conservative Party
  

• Ontario New Democratic Party
  

• Green Party of Ontario
  
• Find Your Candidate
  

Disclaimer – The information above was taken directly from Elections Ontario sources and is believed to be correct but is given here as a guide and is not official. Any questions regarding identification required, or how and where to vote should be directed to your local returning office.

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Maintaining Trust and Engagement in Canadian Elections

Extracts from a Speech of the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada at the the Economic Club of Canada on September 25, 2012 (my bold)


According to any international democracy index you look at, Canada's democracy is consistently ranked among the top 10 in the world. On standard indicators of democratic health –such as the protection of civil liberties, control of corruption, or a free and accessible electoral process– Canadian democracy scores very high. By all comparative standards, Canada has an enviable record of good governance.
That being said, we cannot be complacent. In my view, there are two areas where the health of our democracy is increasingly under pressure. One of these is citizen engagement; the other is citizens' trust in their electoral institutions.
First, with respect to citizen engagement, on the most basic democratic indicator – voter turnout – Canada has been in steady decline for over two decades. Turnout fell to a record low of 58% in the 2008 election. And while it rebounded slightly in 2011, we are still well below the historical post-war average of 75%..................


Declining voter turnout might be the most striking example of citizen disengagement in Canada, but it's not the only one. Very few Canadians play an active part in election campaigns or belong to political parties. Indeed, the role of political parties has changed significantly over the years. The growing professionalization of political parties and the growing difficulty they have in recruiting volunteers and members has an impact on how election campaigns are run.
My second reason for concern is prompted by certain recent events that could undermine public trust in the electoral process. I am speaking of allegations of deceptive phone calls during the May 2011 general election and of the ongoing legal challenge regarding irregularities at the polls in the riding of Etobicoke Centre. As a result of these issues, over the past months, we have seen the interplay between some of the most important institutions in our country: Parliament, political parties, the media, electoral bodies and the courts, including the Supreme Court. And at the heart of this interplay is our electoral system and our democracy....................


Much of the decline in voter turnout is the result of generational replacement. Put simply, today's young Canadians are much less likely to vote than their parents or grandparents were at the same age. In 1965, about two-thirds of first-time electors voted in their first election. By1984, just over half of first-time electors were voting. And by 2004, that number had fallen to just over one-third. At the same time, today's young electors are also more likely to become habitual non-voters. Together, these two trends are the driving force behind a systemic and long-term voter decline that is quickly approaching 50%..................

The other problem relates to trust. Events during the May 2011 general election have led to more pointed questions regarding the quality of our electoral system, and this concerns me.

Here again, context is important. The heavy focus on problems – whether it be the so-called robocalls issue or the procedural failures in Etobicoke Centre – overshadows a far less newsworthy but incredibly important fact: the last general election, by and large, went very well. And the vast majority of voters – more than 95% according to our post-election survey – were satisfied with their experience and the services provided at the polls.......................


As the election administrator,I accept responsibility for what occurred in Etobicoke Centre and my agency is conducting the necessary reviews to avoid similar situations in the future. But while we can make administrative changes to enhance our processes, these likely won't be enough. Legislative changes may also be necessary to respond to Canadians' concerns regarding the electoral process and make the system less prone to errors.
At the same time, new technologies have changed the approach used by parties and candidates to communicate with electors. These technologies are not, in themselves, problematic and in fact can and are used in positive ways to reach out to electors. However, I am concerned by how they can be misused during an election.
As we have seen this past year, deceptive telephone calls, both live and automated, have arrived on our electoral landscape and their use will have an impact on how Canadians view the electoral system.
We know that Canadians were rightfully offended by news reports regarding possible electoral fraud relating to such calls, and they need to know and trust that there is a process in place to address these issues. In this regard, I will be bringing forward recommendations to ensure that the Canada Elections Act has the right measures to deal with this new reality.
I feel strongly that an electoral system and an electoral law that do not reflect the concerns and values of a modern Canadian electorate will only, in the long term, help fuel disillusionment and disengagement from the political process. That is why modernizing the Canada Elections Act speaks to our need to maintain the integrity of the electoral process in order to ensure trust and encourage civic engagement.
However, prompt action is required. At best, we have a 12- to 18-month window of opportunity to integrate any new changes, including legislation, into the preparations for the 42nd general election to be held in 2015...............

As you can see, these issues are all interconnected. If we do not act to address the problems identified in the last election, there is a risk that trust in our electoral process will be undermined and this could further fuel declining citizen engagement................

Conclusion

Building and maintaining a healthy democracy is a responsibility we all share – citizens, political parties, electoral management bodies, Parliament and the media.
How we choose to react to these issues today will define the scope of the problem for generations to come.
When I look at students returning to school, when I speak to young Canadians preparing themselves for their future, and when I listen to concerned Canadians who care about our democracy, I think it is something that we can no longer delay.


I must admit to finding his call for speedy action rather ironic given the speed with which the various “allegations” of voter fraud and interference have apparently been investigated, however he is correct in saying that it is a responsibility we all share – even if there is little that we the voter can do about it until the next election.
The above is just a few extracts of a much longer speech which may be read here on the Elections Canada web site.






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Those Questionable Polls

There have been a number of comments that the overturned election results at Etobicoke Centre was due to a failure of Elections Canada and whilst it is true that they are ultimately responsible for ensuring that the rules are followed there are a few things that are not being said.

It must be understood that each location (with more that one individual poll) has a 'Central Poll Supervisor' in overall charge and a 'Deputy Returning Office' and a 'Poll Clerk' for each poll who are charged with working together to identify and record those who wish to vote, and the voters name and addresses against the list when registering voters. I note however that “The Deputy Returning Officer is solely responsible for deciding on accepting or rejecting a piece of identification”. These individuals are generally simply folks who want to earn a few extra dollars by working for elections Canada for 14 or 16 hours on election day. They receive a brief training prior to the day (the Supervisor more than the others) and are then pretty much on their own.

It is clear that either they did not receive sufficient training, the returning officer and or the supervisor was corrupt or incompetent, or there was a deliberate effort by some of the individuals at these polls to sway the vote. It is, in my mind, these possibilities that need investigation. I make no allegations as to who these folks are but will say that there are no real checks as to their political affiliation, indeed political partys are generally asked to submit the names of interested individuals who wish to work the polls. I further note that political partys can, if they wish, provide 'observers' at poll locations, I do not know if there were such at these polls. Were the questionable polls clustered at one or more particular locations and thus under the control of one or two Supervisors, to whom the rest of the staff report, I don’t know, but it seems passing strange that identification and paperwork protocols were not followed.

Elections Canada has a series of protocols established for any situation that arises during the voting process (including for individuals not on the voters list) the DRO, Returning Officers and Clerks are provided with an extensive booklet setting out the methods and actions to be taken, up to and including how to lay out the tables and voting booths! There is NO excuse for not following such rules and I put the blame squarely upon the clerks and officers at the individual polls. It seems to me whist there is no need to vilify these individuals unless deliberate malfeasance has taken place on their part they should at least be asked 'what were you thinking, were you not told how to handle this?' Perhaps individuals who are found to have knowingly ignored the rules should be restricted from such responsibilities in future elections.

Insofar as an unregistered voter is concerned an elector may be vouched for by an elector who is on the list for that polling division, both individuals must provide proof of identity and address. An elector who has been vouched for may not vouch for another elector and the DRO must administer the oath to both individuals. The Poll Clerk shall record the electors Name and Address in the 'poll book'. If such identification is not provided (and recorded) then the individual may not vote.

Was there a deliberate attempt to overwhelm the staff with many unregistered voters who require extra time, procedures and paperwork at the last minute just before the polls closed, I don’t know but some reports at the time seemed to indicate that this might have been part of the problem. I note that anyone already inside when the polls close is processed and counting proceeds after they have voted and left the premises. I do note that after 12 straight hours without a break with a further 1 or more hours probable in order to count the ballots almost anyone may have a tendency to do whatever they have to to 'get it over with'. There are no provisions for a Returning Officer or Poll Clerk to leave their station other than to close that poll. The provision of one or more 'alternative' Clerks or Officers at the location would do much to smooth out some of the stress that can occur when polling stations become overwhelmed with voters who are upset with the vulgarities of identification or who have been waiting a while to vote.

Having established that the results are invalid due to improper identification procedures let us find out why this happened and take steps to see that it does not happen again. To do that we must know the details of how such errors occurred, perhaps EC is doing so but given the speed with which their investigation into the
robocall mess is proceeding my faith in them is rapidly diminishing, probably much to the delight of those that want to bend the rules!

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The Future of Democracy

Last week I republish a bit of Steves May’s thoughts upon the future of our democracy from a post in his series on this subject. Not having a great deal of time this week I have here cherry picked some items from part IX of this series. Much of his series is focused upon “green” issues but the following is food for thought regarding where are we going with this Parliamentary Democracy of ours. I have added my thoughts upon his comments, Steve & I would be interested in your thoughts upon this.

............................

Changing Public Opinion through Education.Seems like this is going to be a generational project, as public education requires time and energy, and is best accomplished through education which begins at home with children and continues through meaningful exposure through our school systems. The good news here is that we have been largely turning out a good number of critical thinkers in the recent decades who understand and acknowledge the perils we face to a greater degree than do most. So, we’ve already got a bit of an advantage here. It’s too bad that many of the youngest in our society are disadvantaged by mounting debts, and disengaged from the political process and our civil society, which often dismissively shuns their involvement. Given our aging demographic, this doesn’t really come as a surprise.

Indeed education is the key but we must ensure that it is FACTUAL not political spin that the public, and more importantly our youth receives!

Leaders Must Initiate a Public Discussion About the FutureRight now, our governmental Leaders have been completely ducking these discussions. Other leaders, though, are stepping up throughout all sectors of our society, and are trying to engage Canadians. While the media has largely ignored these efforts to plan for our increasingly local futures, the momentum is clearly in place. Our elected Leaders need to play some catch up. Shifting public opinion will be their impetus to do so.This discussion must begin quickly, and it needs to take place in an unbiased manner, based on fact and not conjecture.

I am very much afraid that the majority of our POLITICAL leaders will do NOTHING that would change the status quo unless it is forced upon them by public opinion and pressure from the minority of us who see these issues as a threat to the future of our democracy as we know it. We have many politicians but darn few Leaders!

Sweeping Legislative ChangesThe tools for implementation will require sweeping changes to federal and provincial legislation, and that’s not going to happen over night, especially when the public service is going to be focused on cuts. However, these changes will be needed to force the agenda. Pressure to do so must be unrelenting: from the public, from the business community, from other levels of government, from the media.

Again Steve is aiming more at legislation to implement changes related to Climate Change but the same discussion must take place regarding how we are governed in general.

There are many impediments to changing our laws, even when there is a laser-beam focus to do so. Some things to consider:-Abolish the Senate in case they decide to hold legislative changes up (provincial governments don’t have Senates anyway; we won’t have the luxury for this Chamber any longer...plus, think of the cost savings). If abolishing it won’t work, then suspend it.

Despite the recent revelations on the excessive, perhaps obscene is a better descriptions, expenses of some senators I really believe that we must retain the second chamber in order to put at least some checks upon government proposals, something which at this point does not seem to be happening in the HoC. If we ever get to the point where parliament starts working as it should and discussion and compromise become the norm not the exception, then perhaps there may be room to drastically reduce the Senate. There is not much doubt that there needs to be changes in the way the senators are selected, their term in office and upon the expectations of value for compensation received, but this check upon poorly conceived or worded legislation is still needed at this time..

-Stop the practice of partisan politics and restore meaningful debate to parliament. A bit of a tall order to say the least, but we can do this if we elect fewer politicians who are in Parliament to play games.-Adopt a much more representative form of government which is based on proportional representation. This must be a priority, although we often think it will take time. It doesn’t have to. Our elected officials can just do it. And should.

Agreed, but just about impossible to actually implement, all we can do is keep letting those in power know that partisan politics is unacceptable. We elect individuals to represent us not Partys.

Give Local Governments the Powers They NeedThere will need to be greater partnerships with all levels of government. This includes municipal governments, who are going to be tasked with delivering at least part of the mandate. Municipalities will need to receive real powers from senior levels of government, and finally transition from "creatures of the province" to "mature levels of government". Municipal elected officials must assume this responsibility with foresight and in good faith: they must acknowledge that they will be under a greater degree of public scrutiny, which is as it should be, if municipalities are given the power to tax. Power comes with responsibility. Deal with it.

A VERY complex subject given our current mix of what services are provided by which level of government, and which of those provides the funding and criteria for said services. I agree in principal but the devil is in the details on this one!

UrgencyI’ll say it again: All of this must occur within the context of a sense of impending urgency. Some have suggested something akin to a "wartime mobilization"; I’d like to see a little more thought than that go into it, but really I’m still talking about significant action being discussed over a very short period of time (say 6 months) and then action being implemented quickly. If we’ve learned one thing from the Stimulus spending, it’s that it’s not always as quick to make decisions or implement them as we might like it to be, however, it can still be done.

The longer it takes for Parliamentary and Electoral reform, or to tackle Climate Change issues, the further down that slippery slope towards an irreversible situation we get and the harder it will be to turn back.

Take Personal ResponsibilityYou must take personal responsibility as a member of your family, your community, your province and nation. You must educate yourself to the point where you have a decent understanding of the challenges we are faced with. You must act in concert with the emergent consensus. You must acknowledge that the consequences of inaction are too great to consider…………..

Indeed, each of us must not sit back and ignore these important issues, be it Climate Change as Steve is alluding to, or the demise of our Democracy that I am equally concerned about.

Extracted from Part IX http://sudburysteve.blogspot.com/2009/11/future-of-democracy-in-canada-personal_05.html Support Democracy - Recommend this Post at Progressive Bloggers