Chris Selley: Our blundering Elections Canada only looks good compared to the U.S. system

Election days, both Canadian and especially American, are among the opportunities Canadians take to express publicly their belief in Canada’s general superiority to their southern neighbour. None of America’s gerrymandered districts, malfunctioning technology, hanging chads, hours-long queues to vote or endless legal battles for us. Just a paper ballot and a golf pencil and hand counting, and a result within hours of the polls closing. Alas, Elections Canada did not cover itself in glory on April 28. First, with polls still open in most of the country and many Canadians eagerly in search of information — information as basic as where to vote — Election Canada’s website crashed . Officials confirmed it wasn’t any kind of outside attack (good?), but rather an internal error (bad!). And when it implemented a “contingency website,” apparently designed for just such an eventuality, it lacked that most basic function: The ability to enter your postal code to find out where to vote. Elections Canada’s website isn’t what you would call slick, and slickness absolutely should not be a goal. The pursuit of “better” government websites, to say nothing of apps, is one of the many places where public money goes to die in terror. When the website works, it works just fine. But if its antiquated front end bespeaks an antiquated back end, especially knowing what we know about foreign interference, parliamentarians need to get to the bottom of that. Also this week, Elections Canada had to issue an extraordinary (or so you would think) statement confirming that it “ deeply regrets that some electors in Nunavik (in Quebec) were not able to cast their vote.” Voting in the Far North involves fly-in polling stations. It’s complicated, important work to which no one south of 60 would ever give any thought — and Elections Canada never seems to give it enough thought, either. “Federal election voting closing @ 2:30 p.m. due to unforeseen circumstances,” a sign on the polling station in Salluit, Que., population 1,580, 62 degrees north latitude. Ho hum, no big deal. “In several cases, it was not possible to recruit local teams. In other cases, harsh weather conditions have prevented access to communities,” Elections Canada said in a statement Monday. It has a contingency website, but not a contingency for harsh weather or lack of local poll workers in Nunavik? Ludicrous. What happens in a  winter  election? This happened last time around too, notably in the northwestern Ontario riding of Kenora. “There were no polling stations on election day in three fly-in First Nations, including Pikangikum, Poplar Hill and Cat Lake,” CBC reported in 2021 . “(And) voter cards … had incorrect information about polling stations.” “Any time an elector misses their opportunity to vote, it is something we take seriously — something we take personally — and we’re working to ensure this doesn’t happen again,” an Elections Canada spokesperson told the public broadcaster. “Any time an elector misses their opportunity to vote”? This isn’t like Burger King giving you fries instead of onion rings. This is the most simple, comprehensive failure Elections Canada could possibly make … and they made it again this week. Not that this should make it any more or less concerning, since every vote is worth the same under law, but Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou is no sure-thing riding for any party. Only 2,197 votes separated the Liberal winner Mandy Gull-Masty from Bloc incumbent Sylvie Bérubé. It’s not inconceivable this disenfranchisement could at some point make the difference between a Liberal or Conservative government. Voting by mail would be one obvious solution. But Canadians should never be forced to vote before election day. As is often the case nowadays, advanced polling opened for last Monday’s election before any party had even released its platform. Mail-in ballots must be received by election day to count, and while I’ve never been to Ivujivik, Que., 62 degrees north latitude, population 412, I’m guessing the mail service to Ottawa isn’t the most reliable thing in the world. Perhaps the most obvious solution is to allow mail-in ballots postmarked no later than election day. If we have to wait a little longer for ridings with fly-in communities and other logistical challenges to be decided conclusively, so be it. But while voting by internet isn’t something we need or should be pursuing in general, surely that’s also a reasonable workaround option for places like Nunavik. It’s not like we’re talking about very many people: just 89,087 in Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou, 61,962 in Kenora, 36,858 in Nunavut, 26,655 in Labrador. My Toronto riding has 121,703 people, incidentally. The population-per-riding across this vast democracy ranges from 36,858 in Nunavut to 38,583 in Prince Edward Island to 116,589 in Ontario. That’s not Elections Canada’s fault; that’s the not-very-compelling system they were given to administer. But it’s another great reason not to be too smug about our elections. National Post cselley@postmedia.com

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