A seasonal resident reached out this week. He said he and his wife sat down at their computer to vote last Friday (Oct. 16). However, they quickly realized the wife was on the Algonquin Highlands’ voters’ list, but the husband was not. He found it strange since they are both on the title and have been paying taxes for 30 years and have voted every four.
The resident said they have a seasonal property in another town, as well, and this time found the wife was not on the voters’ list, but the husband was. He concluded it wasn’t a one-off mistake.
The resident said he reached out to various mayors and town clerks in both municipalities and looked online to see if this was an issue.
He did not indicate who replied, but said it appeared they knew about the situation, but didn’t seem too worried about it. They told him to follow the necessary steps to get he, and his wife, on the lists. He was frustrated. He felt it was their job, not his.
His query sent me online as well. There wasn’t much on the topic. Very little commentary from municipalities and little media coverage. It further appears that municipal governments and Elections Ontario seem to have known about the issue as far back as July – merely advising their residents to check if they are on the voters’ list. It seems to be a province-wide issue for all second individuals on the title.
Peterborough County council sounded the alarm for voters, and the Ontario government, that there were discrepancies back in June.
North Kawartha Township mayor Carolyn Amyotte urged the province to prioritize the verification of all voter information in a timely manner before sending the information on to their eight Peterborough County municipalities.
Amyotte stressed that many residents of their County live in the region on a temporary or transient basis, referring in particular to seasonal cottage owners. It was these individuals that Amyotte noticed were not included consistently on voter registration lists provided by the province. In 2022, the Ontario government passed Bill 204 stating that Elections Ontario would be taking over responsibility for the provision of voter registration lists for municipal elections from the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC). During municipal elections, people may vote in multiple municipalities where they own property or reside.
Amyotte noticed a significant reduction in the number of eligible voters, compared to the 2022 municipal election, when reviewing the registration lists with the election returning officer.
Data accuracy is especially important at the municipal level due to the high percentage of people using remote voting options such as mail-in ballots or telephone voting. As such, voters may not have the opportunity to register in-person at the polling station on Oct. 26.
This makes us wonder what is happening in Haliburton County, an area where there are a disproportionate number of eligible seasonal resident voters. How many like the man who reached out to us tried to vote but gave up?
With voting continuing until Oct. 26, we encourage all residents to make sure they are on the list – and, of course, vote: whether online, by phone, or in-person in Minden Hills.
