Online voting should be an option for 2019 N.W.T. election, says official

Adding online voting as an option during the next N.W.T. territorial election could help reduce the number of absentee ballots going uncounted due to delays in mail service, says the territory's chief electoral officer.

An absentee ballot is meant for a voter who is unable to make it to the polls on the day of the election. 

The ballot is typically completed and mailed in before election day, but during the 2015 territorial election in the N.W.T., 35 of the more than 200 absentee ballots arrived in the mail late and were not included in the final vote count. 

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On Friday, Nicole Latour, the N.W.T.'s chief electoral officer, met with members of the legislative assembly to discuss her recommendations to modernize elections in the territory — and hopefully mitigate the problem of disallowed ballots. 

Latour said the cost to implement online voting in the 2019 election would be about $50,000 to $60,000, or $2 per registered voter.

"My mandate is to remove barriers. And if convenience is one of them, then I think we have to have a look at it," Latour said.

"We are doing a lot of secure things on our computers and our phones. I think there is an expectation to have it as an option."

Latour said a special number can be added to the voter cards her office already sends out to electors. She said there is no plan to replace paper ballots.

"My suggestion is it's there as a tool... and then we will see what the uptake is."

Latour said there is no legislation that would allow online voting and it would be up to the territorial government to make it available for the 2019 election.

2,700 names removed from voters list

During the same meeting, Latour also told MLAs that her office removed about 2,700 names from the official voters list, which contained about 28,000 registered voters.

Latour said while she received no official complaints about the list during the election, she was aware some candidates were questioning the accuracy of the registry.

"It had a number of people who were deceased. It had many people who had moved... The list itself wasn't really solid," said Julie Green, MLA for Yellowknife Centre.

"It's a bit of a learning curve for all of us in how we continue to refine it," Latour said.

"I think we are going to do a better job in saying to candidates and putting it out there that if you see irregularities on the list, or if you have questions on the list, you have that provision in the [Elections and Plebiscite Act] to come and have that straightened up."

One of Latour's other recommendations is to extend the period during which the voter list can be adjusted.

She said due to modern technology, there is no longer a need to have lists finalized weeks in advance of an election.