A group wants the city to go back to the past when it comes to counting ballots.
Members of The Honest Vote Project came before council Monday night asking the city to return to hand counted balance, which hasn’t been done since 1997. Robert Wiley, part of the “very loose” 60 member group, said he’s been hearing more and more concerns from the public since the city switched to electronic counting.
“A lot of people are beginning to wonder who is in control of the ballot box,” Wiley said. “We want to return to the manual count we don’t care how much you have spent on the machines… we want an honest vote.”
But city clerk John Hannam said it’s been proven that hand counting an election is the most inaccurate way to tabulate votes. Hannam said each tabulation machine is tested before election day and that past audits have shown the machines to be 100 per cent accurate. Because of the monotonous nature of hand counting, people make mistakes.
“Hand counting has been demonstrated over and over again to be an inaccurate system,” Hannam said.
Andy Wolf presented council with the economic benefits of hand counting. In 1994, 800 people were used during election night. In 2006 election, 225 people were needed. He said the money spent on leasing and maintaining tabulation machines could go to people working elections which would benefit the local economy.
“If you go with an electronic count you’re taking that money out of town,” Wolf said.
Coun. Joe Virdiramo agreed with Wolf and moved to have a vote on whether council should return to the hand count but he couldn’t find a seconder. Virdiramo said in tough economic times the city could help out unemployed people on election night.
“We are eliminating 600 people from the election process by using electronic tabulators,” said Virdiramo.
Hannam said the city has difficulty finding 225 people to work election nights let alone 800. Dominion Voting, which has the contract for electronic tabulators for the city’s next two elections, is a Canadian company so at least the money spent stays in the country Hannam added.
