Opposition to the Conservatives’ Fair Elections Act, which was created to make it more difficult to break elections laws, has resulted in the proposal of 45 new amendments to the bill.
The original bill came under considerable controversy because it would make it harder for some voters to cast a ballot: first, by eliminating the vouching system that allowed 120,000 people to vote in 2011; and second, by disallowing the use of Voter Identification Cards (VICs) for university students, seniors in residence, and Aboriginal people living on reserves.
However, the proposed amendments include backing down on the elimination of the vouching system and the continual acceptance of VICs as ID. Also, the proposal no longer includes a campaign-finance change which would eliminate limits on fundraising calls to anyone who has donated $20 or more in the previous five years, a provision that some worry would give considerable advantage to larger parties with wealthy donors.
As reported in The Globe and Mail, chief electoral officer Marc Mayrand warned parliament that this financial exemption would “compromise the playing field” between political parties and would be “difficult if not impossible” to enforce.
Despite expectations that the bill will now pass, critics are still concerned about the Fair Elections Act. “I’d say it’s significantly improved in about one-third of the problematic areas, but there’s two-thirds of very problematic areas it doesn’t touch,” said NDP critic Craig Scott.
The 2014 Fair Elections Act was met with much opposition from Canadian politicians and citizens. A petition against the bill exceeded its goal of 50,000 signatures from Canadians within just 24 hours.
Chardaye Bueckert, SFSS president, has been a strong voice in opposition to the bill since its first proposal. She pointed to its significance to students, with an emphasis on the necessity of vouching and the use of VICs. “[Students] are less likely than the average person to have government-issued photo ID that shows their current address,” due to the fact that they tend to move around the country for education, she explained.
Though unable to have someone else vouch for their residency, or to use a VIC, students from out-of-province would be able to present bills or bank statements showing their addresses to prove residency. Bueckert says this presents a barrier to voting for a demographic with steadily declining voter turnout: “At a time when youth are continually voting less and less [. . .] it is fundamentally illogical and immoral to not make efforts to encourage them to vote.”
While the amendments attempt to address the issue of voter suppression, and to even the political playing field with the removal of the exemption on limit of phone calls to previous donors, the bill still leaves something to be desired for Bueckert. “The second major concern is the inability of Elections Canada to do non-partisan ‘get out the vote’ efforts,” she explained, inhibiting the initiative to improve voter turnout.
On behalf of the SFSS, Bueckert attended a day of national action on March 25, called “Let People Vote!,” organized by local group, LeadNow. The event involved the presentation of a joint petition boasting approximately 84,000 signatures opposing the bill at the office of MP James Moore in Port Moody. There were about 40 people in attendance, including some students, who stood out in the rain to demonstrate their opposition.
Bueckert concluded that it is extremely important for people to be aware of the important changes this bill could bring, a bill that in her words, attempts to systematically disenfranchise people who are less likely to vote for a conservative-style party. Said Bueckert, the proposal “is not appropriate, it’s not democratic, and I think that the response to this bill has shown that it’s not something Canadians will stand for.”
