Holding Saskatoon civic elections in November 'not preferred': report
A review of the 2020 Saskatoon civic election from returning officer Scott Bastian outlines several potential changes that can improve the process.
One option is holding the civic election earlier in the year, to avoid inclement weather and overlap of a provincial election.
“Holding municipal elections in Saskatchewan in November is not preferred," the report reads. "Not only is there potential for poor weather conditions, but the municipal election will continue to overlap with the provincial election. Consideration of a change of season for municipal elections would allow for separation between the provincial and municipal elections and help to alleviate winter weather concerns.”
Last year, the civic election was postponed four days following a massive snow storm.
The report also looks at the impact of having the civic and provincial elections only weeks apart. It says with the provincial election being two weeks before the civic vote, advance polls could have opened up one day before voters cast ballots for premier.
“It was decided to provide a short reprieve between the provincial election date and the city’s first advance poll. In 2024, advance polls for the municipal election can – under current legislation – start one day after the provincial election. This is another reason moving the date of the municipal election is desired.”
Mail-in confusion
With the civic and provincial elections only two weeks apart, the report says the provincial election office in Saskatoon received mail-in ballot applications that were for the municipal election. Meanwhile, the civic election office received mail-in ballot applications for the provincial election.
The report also notes some issues were encountered with the online application form for mail-in ballots. It says the application form did not properly populate information based on the name or address of voters. As a result, a number of applications were rejected.
“A rejected application often resulted in a voter re-applying, in one case, as many as seven times, causing application review time to be significantly increased, belabouring the already manual process.”
The report says there are several ways to improve the application process for mail-in ballots, including using various data attributes to populate information. It also says the process could be better managed with a system dedicated to mail in voting.
The election review outlines several successes, including the establishment of the first-ever drive thru polling station, an increase in advance polls, and a 4,500 per cent increase in mail-in ballot applications.
Lack of voter list can be challenging
The subject of a voters list was also addressed in the review. It says voters lists were prepared for civic elections between 1973 and 1988. In 1991, city council nixed the voters list and it has not been used since.
“The absence of a voters list requires voters to register at the poll by completing a voter registration form and presenting documentation to establish identity and residence. This process requires training election officials to understand the registration form and process and to be familiar with all types of identification that can be produced.”
It says a report from administration in 2016 indicated door-to-door voter enumeration would cost between $380,000 and $500,000.
“To address the issue, recognizing resourcing challenges, the returning officer is exploring the possibility of sharing election-related voter information from provincial and federal sources to create a voters list without enumeration.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Humanist group threatening to sue Vancouver over council prayers
The B.C. Humanist Association has threatened legal action against the City of Vancouver for allowing prayers at council, following a similar warning issued earlier this month to a smaller community on Vancouver Island.
LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.