The Democratic Process

"These are the people who care about the democratic process and democratic franchise.  They are not going to be easily deterred from casting their votes."
Lawyer Steven Shrybman

Take for example Daniel Speik of Saint-Colomban, Quebec.  He did not in fact cast a vote in the last general election.  He claims that he had received several automated calls claiming to be from Elections Canada informing him that his polling station was elsewhere than he had been previously informed.  He explained he had only been living in the town for three years and was not familiar with its geography.  Which frustrated his intention to vote.

"I didn't go vote because of that, because I'm so busy.  I'm new here from three years, and I don't know really where they changed the place, so I didn't go to vote."  He is one of the complainants listed in documents released by Elections Canada.  Which had received 1,399 complaints across the country of misleading or harassing telephone calls during the last election. 

Given the millions of Canadians eligible to vote, fewer than 1,400 complainants seems rather piddling.

Not, however, for those intent on battling the very horrendous situation that has Canada governed by a Conservative party loathed by the liberal-left.  Their claims of Stephen Harper's hidden agenda that would be revealed to the huge detriment of the country and its traditions if Canadians were ever foolish enough to give it a majority mandate has somehow not yet manifested itself, but that hasn't stopped these ideologues.

Mr. Speik's riding of Riviere-du-Nord was in any event won by an NDP candidate when the NDP swept the Bloc Quebecois out of their majority status to everyone's astonishment.  He had made haste to contact Elections Canada after hearing media reports about "robocalls".  "When I saw it on TV, I said 'Oh my God, I got one too.'" It has been established that most people who received confusing calls had not been deterred from voting. 

Lawyer Steven Shrybman's star witness to scandal is evidently not one of those he described as committed to the democratic process.  And then there's Leeanne Bielli of Toronto who also filed an election challenge in federal court based on fraudulent calls, with her affidavit claiming she was confused by a call informing her that her polling station had moved.

She was convinced to drop her challenge, however, when Conservative researchers discovered that she lived in Don Valley West, not Don Valley East which she believed to be the case.  Another hugely committed voter, valuing the democratic process and democratic franchise, the type so admired by lawyer Steven Shrybman. 

"What you see is a clear pattern in virtually all the survey results that point that to a particular character of activity, extent of activity and targeting of activity" he claims.

He claims the evidence is clear there was fraud or irregularities in the last election; a co-ordinated scheme to suppress non-Conservative votes.  Judge Richard Mosley is not entirely convinced by this lawyer's reasoning.  Expressing his personal doubt that it is reasonable to overturn a result based on the reasonable belief that fraud or irregularities kept voters from the ballot box. 

But Mr. Shrybman wants the results in contested ridings tossed. His challenge of six ridings in federal court is complete with documents that he claims represent proof of a pattern of voter suppression directed toward the supporters of parties opposing the Conservatives.  Those whose testimony he is relying upon to bolster his argument seem as addled as he is, both he and they gunning for the hated Conservatives.

Fact was, supporters of all three parties received confusing calls.  Which is to say an absolute handful of voters received what can only be characterized as nuisance, crank or prank calls before the election.  Hardly representing a well-planned and -executed and -funded deliberate attempt to suborn the democratic franchise. 

In a stretch of ideological imagination.