Special Events and Conferences
Electoral Boundaries Workshop for Nations
of the Caribbean
October 28 – 29, 2010
Ottawa (Canada)
Elections Canada and the Organization of American States are co-hosting a workshop to discuss electoral boundaries readjustment practices with representatives from Caribbean nations.
The event is an opportunity for members of the Association of Caribbean Electoral Organizations to learn about the process and technology used at the federal level in Canada to readjust electoral boundaries. Many Caribbean countries are legally mandated to redraw their maps after an established period of time. These countries wish to learn about the experience of others before conducting their own review. The following discussions will be held:
- Canada’s electoral system
- How redistribution works in Canada
- Preserving the neutrality of the Chief Electoral Officer
- Mapping the territory: geographic data
- Counting heads: demographic data
- Getting citizens involved
- Registering electors
The workshop is a timely event for Elections Canada, which will use this opportunity to prepare for its own redistribution process. This process will be initiated following the receipt of the 2011 census population figures. Given the similarities between the electoral systems in Canada and the Caribbean nations, an exchange on best practices and lessons learned will be mutually beneficial.
Participating nations
Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St.Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.