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Report of the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada Following the May 13, 2013, By-election Held in Labrador and the November 25, 2013, By-elections Held in Bourassa, Brandon–Souris, Provencher and Toronto Centre

Appendix: Tables

Table 1 – Types of polling sites1
Type of facility Ordinary poll2 Advance poll
Number Percentage (%) Number Percentage (%)
Labrador
Apartment building 0 0 0 0
Band office 1 3 1 5
Church hall 1 3 1 5
Commercial site 3 9 1 5
Community centre 15 47 9 45
Educational facility 1 3 0 0
Municipal or township hall 3 9 4 20
Royal Canadian Legion 2 6 0 0
Seniors' residence 0 0 0 0
Other 6 19 4 20
Total 32 100 20 100
Bourassa
Apartment building 0 0 0 0
Band office 0 0 0 0
Church hall 0 0 1 17
Commercial site 0 0 0 0
Community centre 2 6 2 33
Educational facility 21 60 0 0
Municipal or township hall 1 3 2 33
Royal Canadian Legion 0 0 0 0
Seniors' residence 10 29 0 0
Other 1 3 1 17
Total 35 100 6 100
Brandon–Souris
Apartment building 3 4 0 0
Band office 0 0 0 0
Church hall 10 14 0 0
Commercial site 0 0 1 13
Community centre 38 53 5 63
Educational facility 8 11 0 0
Municipal or township hall 3 4 1 13
Royal Canadian Legion 5 7 0 0
Seniors' residence 4 6 1 13
Other 1 1 0 0
Total 72 100 8 100
Provencher
Apartment building 0 0 0 0
Band office 1 2 0 0
Church hall 3 5 1 9
Commercial site 2 3 3 27
Community centre 57 86 5 45
Educational facility 0 0 0 0
Municipal or township hall 0 0 0 0
Royal Canadian Legion 0 0 0 0
Seniors' residence 1 2 1 9
Other 2 3 1 9
Total 66 100 11 100
Toronto Centre
Apartment building 43 63 1 8
Band office 0 0 0 0
Church hall 6 9 3 23
Commercial site 1 1 1 8
Community centre 5 7 3 23
Educational facility 10 15 5 38
Municipal or township hall 0 0 0 0
Royal Canadian Legion 0 0 0 0
Seniors' residence 2 3 0 0
Other 1 1 0 0
Total 68 100 13 100

1 Because percentages have been rounded, there may be some discrepancies in the totals.

2 Excludes mobile polls.

Table 2 – Types of polling stations
Electoral district Ordinary polls Advance polls Total
Stationary Mobile
Labrador 66 3 20 89
Bourassa 186 5 11 202
Brandon–Souris 185 9 13 207
Provencher 173 8 12 193
Toronto Centre 251 2 13 266
Table 3 – Types of polling sites used in the 2013 by-elections and 41st general election
Electoral district Ordinary polling sites Mobile polling sites
2013
by-election
41st general election 2013
by-election
41st general election
Labrador 32 33 9 7
Bourassa 35 39 15 14
Brandon–Souris 72 72 27 26
Provencher 66 67 47 46
Toronto Centre 68 68 7 8
Table 4 – Polling sites with level access (excluding institutions visited by mobile polls)1
Electoral district Accessible without modification Accessible after modification Total
Labrador 33 02 34
Bourassa 39 0 39
Brandon–Souris 75 1 76
Provencher 68 1 69
Toronto Centre 68 0 68

1 According to the information contained in the inventory of polling sites.

2 In the Labrador by-election, the village of Charlottetown, located in a very remote area on the east coast, had 302 electors on the preliminary list of electors. The only building available as a polling location was an apartment building with a six-inch threshold at the front door. The returning officer made every effort to engage skilled workers to modify the threshold, but to no avail. In response to the returning officer's request, and after confirming that all due diligence had been carried out, the Chief Electoral Officer granted authorization to use a site without level access.

Table 5 – Community relations officers hired, by electoral district and target group
CRO type Youth Ethnocultural Aboriginal Homeless Seniors Total
Labrador 1 0 1 0 1 3
Bourassa 1 1 0 0 1 3
Brandon–Souris 1 0 1 0 1 3
Provencher 0 0 1 0 2 3
Toronto Centre 1 1 1 1 1 5
Total 4 2 4 1 6 17
Table 6 – Adaptations made during the 2013 by-elections pursuant to section 17 of the Canada Elections Act
Statutory provision(s) adapted Explanatory notes
Section 159 Purpose: Permitted the issue of transfer certificates to electors affected by a snowstorm. This adaptation was made in the by-election of May 13, 2013, in the electoral district of Labrador.

Explanation: A number of electors were stranded away from their community as a result of a snowstorm and could more easily access another polling station than their own. Existing statutory conditions did not permit issuing transfer certificates in the circumstances.

Adaptation: Permitted the issue of transfer certificates to electors unable to vote in their polling division as a result of a snowstorm; it enabled the affected electors to vote in the by-election.
Sections 22, 135, 283 Purpose: Allowed returning officers to hire additional election officers where necessary at advance polls and on election day. The adaptation was made in the by-election of May 13, 2013, and the four by-elections on November 25, 2013.

Explanation: Provisions of the Act dealing with staffing levels at advance polls and on election day have not been amended to deal with the additional and more complex tasks that election officers must carry out. These tasks result from the new voter identification requirements as well as the need to transmit data about electors who have voted to candidates' representatives periodically during the day. As well, more and more electors are voting on advance polling days, but the Act provides for fewer personnel on these days and requires more formalities for electors to complete.

Adaptation: Authorized the returning officers to appoint additional persons to carry out functions under the Act, including counting the ballots, if required.
Table 7 – Instructions issued by the Chief Electoral Officer during the 2013 by-elections pursuant to section 179 of the Special Voting Rules as Adapted for the Purposes of
a By-election
Statutory provisions Explanatory notes
Sections 276, 278 Purpose: Allowed for certain ballots cast at the local Elections Canada office in the by-election of November 25, 2013, in the electoral district of Toronto Centre to be counted, despite not complying with legislative requirements.

Explanation: In the case of 153 electors in the electoral district of Toronto Centre who voted at the local Elections Canada office, ballots were not correctly placed in either an inner or an outer envelope, as required under the Act, as a result of an error in the instructions given to the electors by an election officer. Under the Act, this would result in the ballots not being counted, despite the election officer having concluded that the electors were entitled to vote in the electoral district and that they had properly completed the application form to receive their ballots.

Adaptation: Set out a process for properly including the identified ballots in the count of ballots after the close of polls, in a manner consistent with existing provisions of the Act, so that the validly cast ballots could be counted.
Table 8 – Lists of electors: revision transactions during the 2013 by-elections
Electoral district Labrador Bourassa Brandon–Souris Provencher Toronto Centre
Electors on preliminary lists, including SVR 20,159 69,191 61,665 66,546 91,711
Moves between electoral districts1 68 1,188 468 546 2,708
Electors added2 724 1,480 1,333 1,448 2,375
Moves within an electoral district3 1,303 1,494 2,941 2,967 682
Other corrections4 340 934 1,269 2,317 586
Electors removed from lists5 353 2,468 855 1,110 4,081
SVR Group 1 updates6 32 0 4 0 –2
Electors on final lists7 20,630 69,395 62,619 67,439 92,780

1 Electors who moved into the electoral district from another electoral district before the beginning of the revision period but were not included in the last release of the Register before the by-elections were called.

2 Electors who did not appear on any lists at the beginning of the by-elections and were added during the events.

3 Electors who appeared on a list for their electoral district at the beginning of the by-elections but at the wrong address. These figures also include administrative changes that the returning officers made to elector records during the by-elections.

4 Electors who appeared on a list of electors at the correct address and requested a correction to their name or mailing address during the by-elections.

5 Electors who appeared on a list of electors but were removed for one of the following reasons: they had died; they asked to be removed; they had moved; they were not qualified to be on the list (e.g. because they were under 18 years of age or were not citizens); there was a duplicate record on the list. This figure also reflects elector records removed because the electors had moved to another electoral district during the by-elections and duplicates removed when the final lists of electors were being prepared.

6 Indicates the increase or decrease in the number of Group 1 electors registered under the SVR (Canadian electors temporarily residing outside Canada, Canadian Forces electors and incarcerated electors) during the by-elections.

7 The number of electors on the final lists is the sum of electors on the preliminary lists, moves between electoral districts, electors added and SVR Group 1 updates minus electors removed from lists.

Table 9 – Quality indicators for the preliminary lists of electors1
Electoral district Coverage Currency Accuracy
Labrador 97.0% 91.0% 93.7%
Bourassa 99.0% 86.7% 87.6%
Brandon–Souris 89.9% 78.2% 86.9%
Provencher 91.5% 86.4% 94.5%
Toronto Centre 82.2% 74.7% 90.9%

1 Excludes estimated deceased electors, duplicates and non-Canadian citizens.

Table 10 – Special Voting Rules ballots for the 2013 by-elections
Election day Electoral district Ballots issued Valid ballots Rejected ballots Ballots cast Ballots returned on time1 Ballots received late
Group 1 (Canadian Forces, international, incarcerated) May 13, 2013 Labrador 191 57 1 56 29.3% 0
Nov. 25, 2013 Bourassa 74 4 0 4 5.4% 0
Brandon–Souris 358 18 1 17 4.7% 0
Provencher 75 5 0 5 6.7% 1
Toronto Centre 138 16 1 14 10.1% 2
Subtotals   836 100 3 96 11.5% 3
Group 2 (local2 and national3) May 13, 2013 Labrador 372 360 0 360 96.8% 0
Nov. 25, 2013 Bourassa 341 341 9 332 97.4% 0
Brandon–Souris 505 496 0 496 98.2% 0
Provencher 171 166 1 166 97.1% 0
Toronto Centre 522 509 10 499 95.6% 1
Subtotals   1,911 1,872 20 1,853 97.0% 1
Totals   2,747 1,972 23 1,949 71.0% 4

1 Percentage of ballots cast by ballots issued.

2 Electors whose applications were processed and whose ballots were counted at local Elections Canada offices. This includes electors who registered to vote in acute care facilities. The number of local ballots received late is not available.

3 Electors whose applications were processed and whose ballots were counted by Elections Canada in Ottawa.

Table 11 – Number of ballots cast, by voting method and voter turnout1
Electoral district Labrador Bourassa Brandon–Souris Provencher Toronto Centre
Number of electors on final lists 20,630 69,395 62,619 67,439 92,780

Ordinary polls2

10,163 16,080 24,814 20,144 29,059
Ordinary polls (percentage) 83.7% 86.3% 89.4% 89.3% 83.0%
Advance polls 1,560 2,208 2,421 2,238 5,426
Advance polls (percentage) 12.9% 11.8% 8.7% 9.9% 15.5%
Voting by special ballot (under the SVR) 414 345 508 171 513
Voting by special ballot (under the SVR) (percentage) 3.4% 1.9% 1.8% 0.8% 1.5%
Rejected ballots 27 295 106 136 177
Rejected ballots (percentage) 0.2% 1.6% 0.4% 0.6% 0.5%
Total valid ballots 12,110 18,338 27,637 22,417  
Total valid ballots (percentage) 99.8% 98.4% 99.6% 99.4% 99.5%
Total votes cast 12,137 18,633 27,743 22,553 34,998
Voter turnout in 2013
by-elections
58.8% 26.9% 44.3% 33.4% 37.7%
Voter turnout in previous general election (May 2011) 52.9% 55.1% 57.5% 61.7% 62.9%

1 Percentages have been rounded.

2 Includes electors who voted at mobile polls.

Table 12 – Valid votes obtained, by candidate
Candidate and affiliation Place of
residence
Occupation Valid votes obtained Percentage of valid votes
(%)1
Labrador
Yvonne Jones
Liberal Party of Canada
Mary's Harbour Parliamentarian 5,812 48.0
Peter Penashue
Conservative Party of Canada
Sheshatshiu Parliamentarian 3,924 32.4
Harry Borlase
New Democratic Party
Gatineau, QC Northern analyst 2,324 19.2
Norman Andrews
Libertarian Party of Canada
Happy Valley–Goose Bay Driver 50 0.4
Bourassa
Emmanuel Dubourg
Liberal Party of Canada
Saint-Lambert Accountant 8,825 48.1
Stéphane Moraille
New Democratic Party
Boucherville Lawyer 5,766 31.4
Daniel Duranleau
Bloc Québécois
Montréal Community activist 2,387 13.0
Rida Mahmoud
Conservative Party of Canada
Montréal-Nord Architectural technologist 852 4.6
Danny Polifroni
Green Party of Canada
Montréal Engineer 368 2.0
Serge Lavoie
Rhinoceros Party
Montréal Musician 140 0.8
Brandon–Souris
Larry Maguire
Conservative Party of Canada
Virden Legislator 12,205 44.2
Rolf Dinsdale
Liberal Party of Canada
Brandon Business executive 11,816 42.8
Cory Szczepanski
New Democratic Party
Wawanesa Welder 1,996 7.2
David Michael Neufeld
Green Party of Canada
Boissevain Farmer 1,349 4.9
Frank William James Godon
Libertarian Party of Canada
Boissevain Contractor/Carpenter 271 1.0
Provencher
Ted Falk
Conservative Party of Canada
Steinbach Business owner 13,046 58.2
Terry Hayward
Liberal Party of Canada
Anola Retired 6,711 29.9
Natalie Courcelles Beaudry
New Democratic Party
Lorette Constituency assistant 1,843 8.2
Janine Gibson
Green Party of Canada
Grunthal Organic inspector 817 3.6
Toronto Centre
Chrystia Freeland
Liberal Party of Canada
Toronto Journalist 17,194 49.4
Linda McQuaig
New Democratic Party
Toronto Author and journalist 12,640 36.3
Geoff Pollock
Conservative Party of Canada
Toronto Lawyer 3,004 8.6
John Deverell
Green Party of Canada
Toronto Retired journalist 1,034 3.0
Dorian Baxter
Progressive Canadian Party
Newmarket Anglican clergy 453 1.3
Judi Falardeau
Libertarian Party of Canada
Toronto Entrepreneur and chef 236 0.7
Kevin Clarke
Independent
Toronto Servant 84 0.2
John "The Engineer" Turmel
Independent
Brantford Banking systems engineer 56 0.2
Leslie Bory
Independent
Dunnville Machinist 51 0.1
Michael Nicula
Online Party of Canada
Toronto IT entrepreneur 43 0.1
Bahman Yazdanfar
Independent
Toronto Business consultant 26 0.1

1 Percentages have been rounded.