The Liberal Party is gathering data on purported irregularities at the polls as it decides whether to dispute a narrow loss in northern Saskatchewan.
Daniel Bourque, campaign manager for Liberal candidate Lawrence Joseph, said he is “taking note of” reports of problems experienced by voters in Desnethé-Missinippi-Churchill River on election night.
“It was a close result. We just want to make sure that the intentions of the voters are clear and respected,” Bourque told The Reminder late Wednesday afternoon. “We’re exploring our options, but we’re not – but that’s all.”
Asked whether those options include both a recount and an effort to have the election result overturned, Bourque simply said, “I won’t comment on that.”
Later in the interview, he added, “We haven’t decided if we’re going to call for a recount.”
Joseph lost Monday’s race in Desnethé by 70 votes out of 30,192 cast. Georgina Jolibois of the NDP was declared the winner.
In an interview, Joseph referred to the party’s collection of reports of voting irregularities as an “investigation.”
“I’m not directing the investigation,” he said. “I am just sitting back and letting the process work its way through. If there’s any chance of correcting the process for future elections or actually doing something about what just occurred [on election night], let it be so.”
Shortly after the last poll in Desnethé reported early Tuesday, Joseph told The Reminder he received troubling reports of voting delays on the Ahtahkakoop and Big River reserves, the latter being his home community.
He said he was told certain polls did not have enough ballots and that delays in obtaining extra ballots deterred some people from voting.
Joseph said Wednesday that he was hearing many voter concerns, but he did not elaborate on the nature of the complaints.
Asked whether he would seek a recount or to overturn the results, he deferred the question.
“I’m really not the person to talk to on that,” Joseph said. “I would like fair play. That’s all I want for myself, and it’s so close, the numbers…and whether that is enough to put about some questions that will either have a recount or a complete overturn of the election for Desnethé, it’s not up to me. I refer that matter to the people who are looking at it and certainly would not presume anything’s going to happen.”
Asked whether Elections Canada would be the end point for the reports the Liberals are gathering, Bourque answered in the affirmative: “Correct.”
James Hale, a spokesman for Elections Canada, said Wednesday the agency had received reports of delayed or insufficient ballots on five reserves across Canada. None of them were in Desnethé.
In those five cases, he said the longest delay for voters was 15 to 20 minutes and that Elections Canada determined all eligible voters who wanted to vote did so.
Hale said automatic vote recounts are triggered when the top candidate wins by a margin of less than 1/1,000th of total votes cast. The NDP’s 70-vote win in Desnethé does not meet that threshold.
However, any elector in any riding can go before a judge to request a recount.
Returning officers have seven days – until this Monday, Oct. 26 – to validate the results in each riding. A request for a recount has to be made within four days of validation.
The law also allows any elector to contest an election on the grounds that irregularities impacted the result. The elector must take the case to a judge, who then dismisses the application or invalidates the result of the election.
Contested elections are rare, but there is an example in recent history. In 2011, Borys Wrzesnewskyj, who lost a Toronto riding by 26 votes, went to court to challenge the result based on polling station irregularities.
An Ontario court judge ruled in Wrzesnewskyj’s favour, but he lost when the case went to the Supreme Court.
In its reporting on the Supreme Court ruling, CBC noted in part that the decision determined that “the entitlement to vote cannot be annulled due to procedural errors.”
Joseph said his attitude at this point is to “let the chips fall where they may.” And if his second-place finish stands?
“No one feels okay after losing so close, but I’m not going to just jump up and down and say, ‘This is not right,’” he said. “If that’s the way it falls, I have no choice but to accept it and wish the best to the newly elected representative of the North.”
Speaking to The Reminder on Tuesday morning, Jolibois, the NDP candidate, said she was going by the results announced on election night and would “wait for further information if any other developments arise from anyone.”
