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Maha results historic endorsement of our governance model rejection of Cong's lies deceit PM ModiWhen and where a vote takes place is a decision reserved for the municipal clerk, but the method is up to council, which settled on an online only election. The Municipal Elections Act sets out limits on what council can decide – only the method of the vote. It also outlines the many responsibilities of the clerk. Grey Highlands Clerk Amanda Fines-VanAlstine said that the help centre at the municipal office in Markdale will be open throughout the election period. Details on help centres in other locations will be released when those decisions are made. People who are confident with technology can just vote on their own devices after inputting a code that will be mailed out. DIFFERING OPINIONS The method had to be chosen now, so that the municipality could put out a tender for contracted services for the 2026 election. Originally, council considered a motion for telephone and internet voting. Coun. Tom Allwood shared that he heard criticisms of the phone voting, as did others, so that option was dropped. The vote to limit the vote to internet only with no polling stations and paper ballots was a narrow one – 4 to 3. Mayor Paul McQueen, Deputy Mayor Dane Nielsen and Coun. Dan Wickens were opposed. The Deputy Mayor said that while internet was a good option, he strongly supported that in-person voting be kept in a rural municipality such as Grey Highlands. “We need to have a voting booth on voting day – it’s a strong part of the democratic pride in our voting system,” he said. Mayor McQueen observed that many people like to vote on “Election Day”, even though there is a wider window for voting with alternate methods. And on the last day in the 2018 election, the only polling station open was at the municipal office. Mayor McQueen said he had heard from voters who turned out to spots where there had been prior help centres but there was nothing there. Clerk Fines VanAlstine said that communication would be a big part of the lead-up to the election. She said that, on election day itself, it’s easier if it’s one location. Computers to use for voting will be provided at other help centres and at the municipal office, as well as any assistance needed. The clerk commented that the electronic voting received many compliments when used at Grey Gables in 2022. Election Day is a Monday, when libraries are normally closed, Coun. Paul Allen noted. The clerk steered the conversation away from the topics of the operations side of the election, which for reason of impartiality is placed in the hands of the municipal clerk. MORE DISCUSSION Coun. Dan Wickens also argued in favour of the paper ballot. “I think there’s a large part of the population that are not comfortable even with telephone voting,” he said. “They don’t trust it – they want to see that piece of paper go in the box and they want to see a person count it”. With paper ballots tabulators are often used, and the clerk said those communicate online with voters’ lists, and there are very few suppliers. Mayor Paul McQueen said that both provincial and federal elections are in-person and that is what people are accustomed to, so keeping it consistent has advantages. While it has been argued that internet voting could increase participation levels in elections, that has not been the case. In 2018, there were server issues that caused long delays. An emergency was declared and the voting period extended. Another voting method that has been used in Grey Highlands in the past is a mail-in ballot. Both that method and computer voting are attempts to make it easier for property-owners who don’t live in the municipality to vote. The clerk said she had heard recently that there was one other municipality which had not chosen its voting method. All the others were using internet and telephone voting except Chatsworth, which is strictly the mail-in ballot, she said. During the discussion, Coun. Paul Allen asked if any member was opposed to computer voting, and no one spoke. So, it was really what if any alternatives would be provided that constituted the debate. The pricing for various options was provided in the staff report Internet voting is cost-effective, but councillors also raised participation levels and people’s trust in the process as other concerns. Coun. Joel Loughead said he finds the electronic voting at a help centre much like a paper ballot – “it’s about the act of being there and pressing the button”. Deputy Mayor Nielsen commented before the final vote, that going to a singular electronic voting method was a mistake. “I think this will turn off a segment of our population – I think the goal is to get as much buy-in and response as possible.” Coun. Wickens agreed. “I do think we will be alienating – maybe only a small portion of voters – but I think there are lots of people out there that do not trust the internet.” He said that using people to count ballots mean the vote would be independent of any possible interference or technical glitches. When facing the same decision for the election of 2022, members of the 2018 to 2022 council commented that with codes being issued by mail, they could go to the wrong households or be used by other individuals than those to whom they are addressed,. Other questions they raised were: -How many people thought they had voted, who actually hadn’t? -How many people gave up who would otherwise have voted? -How many were blocked by the system, because it had the wrong year of birth information or for some other reason? -If there were fraudulent votes cast – for example, by people voting in place of other household members, who would be able to prove it? What does acquiring assistance do to the principle of a secret ballot?