PROC Committee Report

Supplementary report from the conservative party of canada regarding the conduct of a pandemic election

Introduction

Canadian elections are among some of the freest and fairest in the world. Our democracy works optimally when every elector is enabled to make their voice heard. Ensuring that Canadians have access to the resources needed to inform and cast their vote is a large task that must be accomplished simultaneously with the installation of necessary election infrastructure. However, just as the COVID-19 pandemic has temporarily changed how Canadians do their jobs, shop for groceries and interact with neighbours, it has also changed how Canadians vote in elections. As demonstrated in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, and currently, in Newfoundland and Labrador, these challenges must be accounted for when planning for an election during the pandemic.

Importantly, the Committee’s majority report recommends that the government not call a federal election during the pandemic unless it is defeated on a motion of non-confidence. Unfortunately, the Liberal government has already indicated their desire to recklessly send Canadians to the polls at whatever time they deem to be the most advantageous for the Prime Minister. In addition, the government has already introduced legislation outlining their own personal ideas of how to make a pandemic election safe, completely separate from the work of the Committee, and therefore informed by none of its evidence.

Canadians know that they cannot trust the word of the Prime Minister, who has already failed them on vaccines, rapid testing, and border security. Conservatives are committed to working collaboratively and taking steps that secure the safety of an election, while ensuring the Prime Minister remains accountable every step of the way. However, as expressed in the above report, it is the opinion of this committee that the government has a moral obligation to refrain from triggering an election or orchestrating its own downfall, as the Prime Minister has already tried to do.

The Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs’ (The Committee’s) report detailed above, in tandem with the interim report tabled on December 11, 2020 provides helpful guidance to the government on how this process may be faithfully executed while safeguarding the health and safety of Canadians. While the report contains informative feedback from provinces, health officials, elections officers and key stakeholder groups, the Liberal members of the committee have chosen to pursue several questionable ideas that are not backed up by the evidence. This supplementary report is designed to clearly outline where the government may be overstepping in ways that hinder efforts to keep our elections free and safe.

Length of a Pandemic Election and Protecting Seniors in Long-Term Care

All political parties are committed to protecting Canadians’ health in the event of an election during the pandemic. However, committee members disagree on the best ways to do this. Conservative Members of the committee believe that a longer election period would be helpful for the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) to have maximum flexibility to conduct appropriate consultations with health officials and install effective public health measures to protect voters. The CEO himself affirmed this when he appeared before committee, saying that he “strongly recommended the longest possible election period” and that it was “the most important factor in achieving success.”[1]

The main objection to a longer writ period seems to be that it would unnecessarily endanger those living in long-term care homes. However, witnesses confirmed that, with appropriate consultation with facilities and public health officials, these fears can be alleviated. Jason Lee from the Canadian Association for Long Term Care indicated that his organization was “less concerned about the duration of the actual election campaign than we are about what we’re doing here now, which is the pre-planning to make sure that we have thought of all the scenarios and that we have a plan in place, that, hopefully, is communicated clearly in advance from Elections Canada across the country. If that’s the case, then we could probably manage an election campaign of any of [the usual] durations.”[2]

Conservatives share the concerns of witnesses, and many Canadians, who wish to keep vulnerable populations safe from possible contact with COVID-19. These witnesses indicated that the key to keeping our seniors safe would be to limit, to the greatest degree possible, the number of individuals entering long-term care homes and the length of time they spend in the home. Ms. Donna Duncan from the Ontario Long Term Care Association said that “having more people come into the home creates fear when you’re in a hot spot.”[3] That is why we are recommending that the number of individuals tasked with conducting the vote in long-term care facilities be limited to a single individual. This will enable residents of long-term care facilities to remain safely in their home to vote, while limiting their contact with those from outside their residence.

Mr. Lee testified that rapid tests could contribute to overcoming the challenges of administering the vote in long-term care homes, without overburdening staff. This could be achieved by admitting a single Elections Canada official, who tests negative for COVID-19 into a single long-term care home to help conduct the vote. [4] We believe that options like this ought to be explored in consultation with experts. To that end, Conservatives are pleased with the Committee’s recommendation to ensure that rapid tests are secured for Elections Canada in the event of a pandemic election. We sincerely hope the government has learned its lesson from its previous failures on the procurement of these tests during the first wave of the pandemic and prepare accordingly to ensure the safety of Canada’s seniors if an election is called.

This suggested measure and the corresponding testimony received from witnesses is in direct opposition to the government’s decision in C-19 to allow polling stations to open in long term care institutions as many as 13 days before the end of the writ period. This is in fact the opposite of what long-term care providers want. Instead of creating a system that would be, “more condensed and more defined” the government’s suggestion will require more election workers to enter long-term care homes more frequently.[5] Clearly, the government should have listened to the experts who appeared at the committee before prematurely drafting their flawed legislation.

Mail in Ballots

As Conservatives indicated in our Supplementary Interim Report, we disagree with the Chief Electoral Officer’s recommendation to allow the receipt of mail-in ballots after the close of polls during the voting period.[6] Similarly, we believe that the Committee should have included a recommendation that ensured ballots received after the close of polls should not be counted. The election should end on Election Day and Canadians deserve to know the results without delay.

Ultimately, Conservatives recognize that regardless of when the deadline to submit ballots occurs, there will be some votes that arrive too late. We trust that the majority Canadians are capable of planning ahead and mailing their ballots within the appropriate timeframe.  We believe that Elections Canada, working with Canada Post and political candidates, should be able to advise Canadians of the necessary timelines for submitting their mail-in ballots, to ensure they arrive in time to be counted. We support the Committee’s recommendation for the government to enable Elections Canada to increase awareness about the process.

Elections Canada, Canada Post, and political candidates all share the responsibility of equipping Canadians with the information they need to ensure their ballot arrives in time. This responsibility includes taking steps to reduce the occurrence of late ballots. For example, ensuring the final day of the voting period is on a Monday allows Canada Post to deliver mail accumulated over the previous voting day(s) where mail is not collected or delivered. Conservatives support the Committee’s recommendations that reflect this kind of flexibility, however, we believe that Canadians deserve to know the results of an election on Election Day itself. The anxiety and uncertainty that would be caused by a delay of election results is unacceptable, and unfortunately, these concerns are not given appropriate consideration in this report and its recommendations.

We also recommend that Canada Post and Elections Canada replicate the work of Elections BC to provide as many options for voters to return their ballots to a returning office at any time. This could include the potential installation of secure, monitored ballot drop boxes that would enable voters to cast their ballot without entering a returning office or other facility.  This would also ensure that those who wait too long to send their ballot through the mail will have an alternative option to ensure their vote is received.

CEO Adaptation Power

While we agree that the CEO should have some flexibility with regards to certain elements of conducting the vote in an unprecedented pandemic election, Conservatives are not satisfied that the limits of this expansion of power have been adequately explored or communicated. Conservatives will be looking for the government to better outline the exact powers given to the CEO and how political parties can play a part in ensuring any changes are fair across the board. We also believe that any recommendations made in this report or in the forthcoming legislation ought to have a set expiration date. Our suggestion is that any temporary provisions should expire after the COVID-19 pandemic is deemed over by Health Canada, or after two years, whichever is sooner.

Accountability cannot be sacrificed when it comes to something as important as Canadians’ fundamental democratic rights.

New Voting Methods/Procedures

Some witnesses discussed how new methods of voting could be introduced in order to ensure all electors have the tools they need to vote. This testimony reflects the real needs of many Canadians and should be given appropriate consideration. However, in the case of a pandemic election, the logistical burdens that would be placed on Elections Canada would dramatically increase. Finding new polling locations, hiring election staff to work directly with the public at a time of heightened risks, and managing consecutive voting days would require rapid, large-scale changes to the existing election infrastructure. To consider sweeping new methods of voting, such as vote-by-phone, seems irresponsible in the face of an already-complex transition. As the Chief Electoral Officer said to the Committee, “A national election is a logistical feat in the best of circumstances, and these are not the best of circumstances.”[7]

The ongoing challenges in the Newfoundland and Labrador elections are demonstrating in real time the difficulty of managing such significant alterations to the system. Election administrators are struggling in their tasks of safeguarding poll workers, managing the collection of mail-in ballots, ensuring the public has confidence in the election results and keeping poll locations open.

To introduce untested infrastructure on a national scale in the midst of other pressing challenges such as securing adequate numbers of poll staff and polling locations would undoubtedly strain our already overburdened public service. That is why Conservatives disagree with the recommendation to add the research, development, and administration of a phone-voting option as additional tasks to Elections Canada’s list of concerns for a pandemic election.

Conclusion

Conservatives are pleased that the Committee has spoken unanimously on many of the issues contained in this report. Particularly, we are thankful that the Liberal Members of the Committee have taken a stand against the whims of the Prime Minister, who has been eagerly pressing towards an election for the last few months. By recommending that the government not call a federal election during the pandemic unless it is defeated on a motion of non-confidence, all members of the committee have affirmed the need to protect our parliamentary democracy from the political games of the PMO. Conservatives look forward to maintaining this kind of accountability from the government, and collaboratively discussing how best to safeguard Canadians, if the Prime Minister decides to trigger an election.

Supplementary Recommendations

1. Any election called during the COVID-19 pandemic last for the maximum duration.
2. Elections Canada only receive ballots until the close of polls on election day and that any ballots received after the close of polls on election day not be counted.
3. Any temporary provisions in this Report shall expire after the COVID-19 pandemic is deemed over by Health Canada, or after two years, whichever is sooner.
4. Elections Canada should extensively consult with Long-Term Care Homes to determine a safe and mutually-agreeable way to conduct the vote in Long-Term Care Homes, and that this discussion include a consideration of how rapid-testing of Elections Canada employees may increase the safety of residents of Long-Term Care Homes.
5. That the government amend C-19 to reflect witness testimony and ensure that the length of time during which Long-Term Care Homes have contact with election workers is limited, and that the number of individuals entering Long-Term Care Homes is kept to an absolute minimum.