Canadians expected to cast up to 2.5M mail-in votes

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This article was published 01/09/2021 (1521 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As the threat of COVID-19 drags on, a record number of voters are expected to cast mail-in federal election ballots.

While the practice may help many avoid gathering at polling stations, some expect it could also increase the risk of voter error, make it tougher for parties to ensure their supporters cast ballots and delay election results.

Elections Canada now expects as many as 2.5 million voters will cast special ballots for the Sept. 20 election, most of them by mail. The ballots can also be cast at local Elections Canada offices.

The estimate is well above the roughly 50,000 people who voted by mail in 2019.

However, sometimes daily changes in COVID-19 infection rates and health orders have made it very difficult to estimate the number of mail-in ballots that will actually be submitted, said Marie-France Kenny, a regional media adviser for Elections Canada.

As of Wednesday, 344,656 special ballot voting kits (that can be mailed in or used to vote at an Elections Canada office) had been issued to Canadians, according to the agency’s website.

For those who do switch to mail-in ballots for the first time, the risk of voter error could increase, a local political scientist said.

“There are a number of hurdles to doing a mail-in ballot and it can fail at any point of the way,” said Christopher Adams, an adjunct professor of political studies at the University of Manitoba.

Unlike traditional ballots, the special mail-in ballots don’t list candidates’ names, instead providing a blank space where voters write in the name of their candidate of choice. That increases the chances of errors, Adams said.

He expects a surge in mail-in votes would also make it more difficult to “get out the vote” on election day. After advance polls close, parties can find out which registered voters have showed up to cast ballots, feedback that may not be as clear for the mail-in option, he said.

“Your efficiency for getting the vote out is (likely) weakened by the mail-in ballot,” he said.

Paul Brault, the campaign manager for Liberal Charleswood-St. James-Assiniboia-Headingley candidate Doug Eyolfson, agreed.

“In advance polls and on election day, there’s feedback of who voted, not how they voted, but (only) if somebody shows up to the polls,” said Brault.

Kenny confirmed parties will be able to get a list of voters who requested a mail-in ballot prior to the election. That information won’t, however, indicate how many of the ballots were actually submitted.

And Brault said the information won’t reveal how many voters forgot about the packages or missed deadlines to submit them.

While Brault doesn’t expect the voting method will prove as popular as early predictions indicated, he notes that an especially high number of mail-in votes could also force Canadians to wait past election night to learn who is elected in some ridings.

“Elections Canada confirmed that it could be up to five days of counting after (election day)… I think that there is a strong probability that we will not know on election night in our electoral district here if we have a clear winner,” he said, noting early predictions point to a very close race.

Voters who do opt for mail-in ballots must apply for them by Sept. 14 and meet key deadlines on election day to ensure their vote is actually counted.

If mailed from outside your riding, Elections Canada must receive the marked ballot by 6 p.m. Eastern time on election day. If mailed from inside your riding, the ballot must be received before polls close.

The special ballots can also be filed during office hours at any Elections Canada office before Sept. 14 at 6 p.m.

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Since a special ballot will be counted only if it is received on time, Elections Canada urges interested voters to apply for and complete their mail-in ballots as soon as they can.

“We’re telling people apply early, as soon as possible,” said Kenny.

For more details and instructional videos, voters can visit https://www.elections.ca/home.aspx

Joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga

Joyanne Pursaga
Reporter

Joyanne is city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. A reporter since 2004, she began covering politics exclusively in 2012, writing on city hall and the Manitoba Legislature for the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in early 2020. Read more about Joyanne.

Every piece of reporting Joyanne produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.