Student associations across Canada are protesting the Fair Elections Act because they say it would make it more difficult for students to participate in the voting process.
The Fair Elections Act would tighten election rules by boosting penalties for offences, reducing voter fraud and empowering political parties to drive voter turnout. Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre put forth the proposed legislation.
The Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) held a national day of action March 25, delivering petitions with 80,000 online signatures to 25 Conservative MP offices across Canada.
“We’ve been referring to it as the Unfair Elections Act because, not only does the Act include provisions that would suppress the votes of many Canadians, but the actual process of putting together the bill and introducing it to Parliament, and how they have generally been dealing with it, has been quite unfair as well,” CFS chairperson Jessica McCormick said.
She said there has been a lack of discourse involving Canadian citizens or electoral officers in discussions of the bill.
McCormick said the CFS was troubled by the act’s elimination of the vouching system as a legitimate voting qualifier, as students studying out of province often use it.
Over 100,000 Canadians used this system to vote in the 2011 federal election, according to McCormick.
“That’s a very significant number of Canadians who, if this bill goes through, and they are unable to use that option to vote, would be unable to cast a ballot,” she said. “I think that is deeply concerning for our democracy to disenfranchise so many people.”
John Enright, a spokesperson for Elections Canada, said he was also concerned by the elimination of the vouching system. But Enright said the act does have some positives.
“Among the good things are an increased number of polling days, because they are adding a day of advanced polls,” he said. “They are adding some offences and they are increasing fines for other offences, which are generally a good thing.”
Enright said he was concerned over the proposed amendments which would eliminate the legitimacy of the voter ID card.
Jonathan Champagne, national director of the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations, said removing the card would also hurt many students studying away from a permanent address.
Champagne said adding electronic Voter ID and multiple on-campus polling stations would benefit students.
“We hope the government will concede to the concerns of students, young people, and youth groups and will make those changes,” he said. “And not only make those changes, but take proactive steps to be able to make it easier and more accessible for students to vote.”
