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Results: 1 - 15 of 21
View Daniel Blaikie Profile
NDP (MB)
On that point, if I may, because it's a good segue to some other questions I have, I might just ask if you could table that breakdown with the committee. That would be very much appreciated.
I know you just mentioned engagement with first nation communities. We had the Assembly of First Nations here at committee, which you may well know. I imagine you're following our study closely.
One of the things they indicated was some frustration on the part of particular first nations that had wanted polling stations in their community and didn't feel that they were able to get them. I'm wondering what you are planning to change in terms of outreach.
The other thing we heard was that the earlier you're able to start in terms of that outreach and the earlier that you might be able to identify and begin to train some people in local first nation communities who would like to have polling stations, the better off they'll be in order to be able to respond.
I'm wondering what work you're doing now and what kinds of resources are being dedicated to being able to prepare first nation communities that want to have polling stations in their community in the context of this pandemic we're all living through. What can they expect from Elections Canada?
Stéphane Perrault
View Stéphane Perrault Profile
Stéphane Perrault
2020-11-19 11:35
Those are very good, important questions for us. The issue of having polling sites on reserves has been an ongoing challenge for us over the years. It's something that we tried to improve in the last election. We did try to engage, and we did engage ahead of the last election with local first nations reserves in order to increase the presence.
Now, first nations do not always wish to have a polling site. I know for Monsieur Therrien in his riding that this has been a historical situation where we have not been successful in having a polling site there. We have to respect that, but we do have to make efforts to make sure we can respond to the demands of first nations and that they're engaged earlier rather than later.
In the last election there was an increase, but not as much as we would have liked. We had 389 reserves with polling sites, compared with 366 in the previous election. It was a small increase. There were a few instances where first nations would say they did not want to have a polling site, and once the edicts were issues and there were local discussions, then they wished to have a polling site. This is a challenge, but to the extent possible we've adjusted to that. I do not know of a single case where we were not able to accommodate a request for a polling site at a first nations community.
In terms of what we're doing, we will have returning officers engaging locally. We plan to have them start in January or February, after Christmas, with first nations reserves. Whether or not there is an election—this is not an indication—they will be starting to engage with first nations to talk about sites, but also to talk about safety measures and recruitment.
We want as much as possible to have first nations serving their communities, so the more we can recruit locally, the better it is for us. It helps simplify the process for everybody.
View Alain Therrien Profile
BQ (QC)
Thank you, Madam Chair.
Mr. Perrault, you talked earlier about La Prairie, the riding I represent. That resonated with me because I was wondering why Kahnawake did not have a polling station on its territory.
I would like you to use 30 seconds or a minute to tell me about the history of this situation. I would like to know it because, as you know, it is of personal interest to me.
Stéphane Perrault
View Stéphane Perrault Profile
Stéphane Perrault
2020-11-19 11:52
I don't know the details of the history. What I do know is that, at every election, we addressed the community to try to establish a polling site. As I said before, that must be done very respectfully. We understand why, for historic reasons, certain communities prefer not to have polling sites.
During the last election, we communicated with community leaders. We were very hopeful: for the first time, there was openness, initially. However, for reasons I am not exactly familiar with, they, within the community and at the last minute, decided not to have a polling site. So people voted in Sainte-Catherine. Am I wrong?
Stéphane Perrault
View Stéphane Perrault Profile
Stéphane Perrault
2020-11-19 11:53
So that's a bit of history, and I don't have much detail on it.
View Corey Tochor Profile
CPC (SK)
Thank you very much, and thank you to our witnesses for appearing here today.
Ms. Potts, what would be the different challenges with regular on-reserve voting versus urban reserve voting?
Amber Potts
View Amber Potts Profile
Amber Potts
2020-11-12 12:09
Thank you for the question.
Of course, there are fewer polling stations on reserves. There's the issue of remoteness for the people who have to travel long distances to get to a polling station. That's the obvious one that is top of my mind.
View Karen Vecchio Profile
CPC (ON)
Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Potts, for joining us today.
I recognize that many reserves are remote and that many don't have access to the general public facilities that we have. What is the percentage of reserves that have voting and polling stations on reserve during a general federal election?
Amber Potts
View Amber Potts Profile
Amber Potts
2020-11-12 12:49
I don't have that statistic available. It is available and it is in our report.
View Karen Vecchio Profile
CPC (ON)
A percentage have them and some do not have them on their reserves. There would be some reserves without a polling station. Is that correct?
View Karen Vecchio Profile
CPC (ON)
Is that because some of them are more remote? Do you know some of the reasons a polling station may not.... For instance, you've referred to the Mohawk first nation. I'm wondering specifically whether it's because they're not welcoming, or is it just because it's been a true oversight and Elections Canada should have done a little more due diligence? What are your thoughts on that?
Amber Potts
View Amber Potts Profile
Amber Potts
2020-11-12 12:50
There's the situation of first nations not wanting a polling station, and then there's the situation of a first nation wanting the polling station and being refused. It could be timing or poor communications between Elections Canada staff and first nations.
View Karen Vecchio Profile
CPC (ON)
For those people who are on reserve but are being made to vote off reserve, are there challenges in getting to those voting stations? What are some of the challenges?
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