Site MenuAdvisory Committee of Political Parties – Meeting Summary – February 13 and 14, 2019
14. Inspire Democracy
Presenter: Lisa Drouillard (Director Outreach and Stakeholder Engagement); Introduction by Susan Torosian (Executive Director, Policy & Public Affairs)
Ms. Drouillard briefed ACPP members on Elections Canada’s Inspire Democracy program, through which Elections Canada works with stakeholders from diverse communities to help ensure people have the information they need to participate in the electoral process. To this end, Elections Canada has developed three stakeholder toolkits on electoral participation that will be launched in spring 2019: Running in a Federal Election, Working at a Federal Election and Registering and Voting in a Federal Election. ACPP was consulted on the Running in a Federal Election toolkit, which would be launched in March 2019.
ACPP representatives were asked to break into smaller roundtable groups to discuss the main information product for the first toolkit: The Guide to Running in a Federal Election, and to provide feedback to Elections Canada staff. One theme that emerged in the feedback of party members was the importance of the position of the Official Agent, and the need to brief candidates on this important role. Many ACPP members indicated they felt the guide would be helpful for someone who hasn’t decided if the there is a political party that is of interest to them. The aesthetic appeal and the fact that the guide was non-partisan were especially well-received by committee representatives. Some ACPP members indicated that they had complimentary information on their websites and saw the Inspire Democracy module as complimentary to their content.