THUNDER BAY – A frustrating election night for candidates and voters will likely lead to a review of the city’s voting process.
Between some voters getting snagged in hour-long lines and candidates waiting nearly 90 minutes after polls were scheduled to close to see the first results, a situation that many members of the next city council agree needs to be examined.
Last June the previous council had received a recommendation from city clerk John Hannam last year to utilize electronic voting but they rejected it. They instead decided to use voting tabulators, believing it would be faster than hand counting the ballots.
Many of those who voted telephone and internet voting then are now changing their tune.
Mayor Keith Hobbs was one of those who wanted to remain with the status quo, at the time citing concerns over potential voter fraud, but said the lineups at the polls and wait for results has changed his mind.
“I was really nervous about it but after (Monday) night I think we have to move the process along,” he said. “The evidence from (Monday) night has really turned my thought process around.”
Hobbs was following social media on election night while awaiting results and saw many people voicing frustration with the process, claiming they had given up and chose not to cast a ballot.
When some races come down to the wire, like the one in Westfort where incumbent Joe Virdiramo edged challenger Frank Scarcello by a mere 45 votes, every potential vote can make a difference.
With that in mind, it’s not acceptable that people should feel it’s not worth making their voice heard.
“Who knows how many people turned away and left,” Hobbs said. “That’s not right. You should always have your right to vote.”
McIntyre councillor-elect Trevor Giertuga was another member of the recent council who voted against an electronic ballot, believing it wasn’t necessary.
The chaos, long lines and delay from this election has changed his mind.
“I think we were completely understaffed, especially the poll I went to,” Giertuga said.
“The delays were horrible and the lineups were horrible. Some people were waiting 90 minutes at some of the polls…I saw people turning around and leaving the polls (Monday) night. We don’t want to see that.”
If the city wants to look at electronic voting, they have a close case study to examine.
The municipality of Shuniah conducted their election with a completely paperless ballot, with people having the option to either vote online or by telephone. The electronic ballot was open 24 hours a day from Oct. 17 before closing at 8 p.m. Monday.
“At 8 p.m. we could see it closed and then it went to a final status at 8:15 p.m. At that time it generated a vote summary,” Shuniah clerk Nadene Hunley-Johansen said.
Everything was done by 8:30 p.m.
Hobbs had already received a call from Wendy Landry, the new Reeve in Shuniah, who had been declared the winner in the municipality even prior to the first numbers being released from the Thunder Bay races.
Nearly 100 municipalities across the province utilized some form of electronic voting to conduct their elections.
On Monday night Hannam had pinpointed a large number of last minute voters as the cause for the delay as many polling stations had to remain open for at least an additional 30 minutes.
