By Stephen Vance, Editor
Today, October 17, is the start of Meaford’s municipal election voting period, which runs until Ontario’s official municipal election day, October 27.
So beginning this morning, those who have received their voter letters in the mail, which contains their voter ID number along with a PIN number, can log on to the voting website, or make a phone call to cast their vote.
Electronic voting – an idea I have always supported in theory, and still do, however I am beginning to wonder how well this new system has been rolled out.
According to the municipality, Meaford voters should have received their voter letters in the mail on October 10. Mine never arrived – well not until this morning.
I did everything I was supposed to do. Months ago, when the municipality announced that voters could go online to ensure they are on the voters list, I did that, and I entered all of the required information, and then sat back, pleased with how easy and quick that task was.
Then I waited. October 10 rolled around and my mail box was empty. When I still had not received my voter letter on Wednesday the 15 th, I contacted the municipal Clerk, who informed me that my name and address were indeed on the list, and I was advised to attend the municipal office to clear up whatever was wrong.
I was planning to attend the municipal office this morning – though internally I was growling and was resenting the need to take time out of my day so that I can be eligible to vote when I had already followed the instructions weeks ago. My trip to the municipal office was cancelled when I stepped out onto my porch this morning and found a letter that had been placed into a clay pot. Immediately I noticed the Meaford logo on the envelope. Strange way to deliver mail I thought.
My name was on the envelope, the address was not mine. Thankfully, whoever received my letter knew where I lived, and dropped it off. They didn’t open it, thankfully, for if they had, there were my personal voter ID number, and my secret PIN, both of which are required to vote. Thankfully, the person who received my letter by mistake didn’t simply open it up, log on to the voting website and vote on my behalf, without my even knowing.
Fortunately that didn’t happen, and today I can vote – but how many have not been so fortunate? The municipal Clerk assured me this morning that problems such as mine have been minimal, and he indicated that MPAC was to blame.
I don’t doubt the municipal Clerk. He’s an upright, honest, hard working professional, but I do doubt that he is yet aware of just how many problems like mine exist. At this point there is no way of knowing with any certainty if every eligible voter has received their letter, or knows that if they haven’t they can contact the municipal office.
It is also unknown how many other letters have gone to the wrong address, and have been simply opened and the voter ID and PIN numbers used to illegally vote with that information.
Over the last several months I’ve heard plenty of complaints about the new electronic voting system. There has been great concern expressed that elderly voters will find the whole thing too confusing, and simply won’t vote. There have been concerns expressed about how secure the voting system is, and whether it can be subject to tampering. There have been many who have asked what is wrong with a simple pencil and some boxes to check – the simplicity of Canada’s federal and provincial election systems that is held up around the world as a simple, effective, accessible, and relatively problem-free way to elect our representatives.
I chalked up many of the concerns being expressed as the normal response to any sort of change, and I felt confident that the voting system itself was an inevitable progression, and one that people would get used to.
In recent days I have heard from several people wondering where their voter letters are, or who still aren’t clear about when and how to vote.
Here is a message I received just yesterday from a reader:
Maybe you should do a Poll on how many people didn’t get their voters cards? Have you heard of any problems? We’ve lived at our address for 12 years and we didn’t get one, called the town office and they told us we were on the voters list. If we don’t get the cards by tomorrow we have to go in person to the Town Office and fill out some papers so that we can Vote!!! This could be a big problem if this is happening to a lot of people as I know they don’t have time to fool around with this and just won’t bother voting…
Thankfully, as of an hour ago, I am all set to vote. Are you? Is your neighbour?
If you or someone you know has not received their voter letters, contact the municipal office and let them know so that it can be sorted out. Then send an email to The Meaford Independent, we would love to discover if my own adventure in voting in this municipal election is an isolated incident, or if it is just a taste of a much larger problem.
