Canadians Have A Right To Vote

"Wrzesnewskyj called for an investigation by Elections Canada into what happened in Etobicoke Centre. Marc Mayrand and Elections Canada have investigated and found that the majority of the questionable voters in Etobicoke Centre according to Judge Lederer's decision were, in fact, qualified voters.

"Now that Elections Canada has found the voters were qualified, Mr. Wrzesnewskyj is trying to block them from presenting this relevant evidence to the courts.  This is surprising and disappointing given he himself called on Elections Canada to get to the bottom of this."  Fred Delorey, Conservative party

The first appeal under the Canada Elections Act ever to be brought to the Supreme Court of Canada, setting a precedent for future contested election cases will be heard tomorrow.  This is a hearing between Conservative MP Ted Opitz and former Liberal MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj to determine which of the two actually won the May 2011 federal election to represent the Toronto riding of Etobicoke Centre.

It is possible that the election results for the riding will be declared null and void.  To do so would require a very solid case representing a riding vote gone very wrong.  In this very instance there is no one individual or group that can be held to account as having conducted themselves in an inappropriate manner, nullifying the vote.  Instead, what has occurred is an "irregularity". 

In this instance the irregularity consists of missing registration certificates. Voters marked their ballots without their registration certificates having been proffered and retained. 

Under a section of the Elections Act permitting a byelection if there are "irregularities, fraud or corrupt or illegal practises that affected the result of the election", this issue is being examined.  A 26-vote margin separated the winner of the riding, Conservative Ted Opitz, from the loser, Liberal MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj.  Mr. Wrzesnewskyj cried foul.

And he personally paid for a recount to prove his point that Mr.Opitz's election win was invalid.  At least 79 votes were counted that should not have been, he contended, because of irregularities. Mr. Opitz has counter-appealed, arguing that the election results were indeed valid and he was the legitimate winner.

Last week Elections Canada filed new evidence that 44 of the voters who had been disqualified in the last court hearing appear on the National Register of Electors.

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association, appearing as an intervener in the case, claims it represents the protection of the right to vote.  Invalidating the vote would fail to respect the right to vote.  Canadians may fail to have confidence in the outcome of an election that questions whether their rights to vote are being respected if they live in the riding and are Canadian citizens.

"Canadians do have a right to a certainty that whatever the ballot count said is the outcome, that they can rely on that.  And that they can know that the person who is representing them in Parliament is the person who was selected by qualified voters from the particular riding."  Allison Thornton, lawyer, Canadian Civil Liberties Association