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Meeting Summary – Technical Meeting – November 20 and 21, 2017

Introductory Remarks by the Acting Chief Electoral Officer

Stéphane Perrault, Acting Chief Electoral Officer (A/CEO), welcomed members of the Advisory Committee of Political Parties (ACPP) to the November 2017 Technical Meeting. Mr. Perrault updated the Committee on the Agency's activities since the June 2017 Annual General Meeting (AGM), shared by-election updates, and went over some planning assumptions, expectations and timelines with regard to forthcoming legislation and the appointment of a new Chief Electoral Officer (CEO).

Mr. Perrault reminded the Committee of the three key objectives of EC's Electoral Services Modernization projects: addressing wait times at the polling stations, improving proximity to voting locations, and offering more voting options for those away from their riding. He also shared EC's Transformation Agenda from an asset renewal and cybersecurity perspective and explained that, while these initiatives primarily affect the internal administration of elections, rather than the elector or candidate experience, these projects are critical to ensuring the smooth delivery of the next election.

Mr. Perrault updated the Committee on the Political Entities Service Centre initiative, which was presented to them at the June 2017 AGM, and shared some highlights from the online questionnaire in September that yielded 851 complete responses from political entities. Overall, respondents were supportive of the proposal to provide products and services online through a centralized portal, and, from a list of potential online products and services, online filing of financial returns was ranked as the most useful among all respondents; this was especially the case for auditors, financial agents and official agents.

Mr. Perrault also gave the Committee an overview of EC's ballot redesign initiative and explained that it had become clear that it was time to update the ballot production model, as fewer suppliers and printers could deliver printed ballots in a timely way. This also presented an opportunity to improve the accessibility of the ballot, particularly its readability for electors with visual impairments.

In closing, Mr. Perrault informed participants that on October 25, 2017, in the case of Szuchewycz v. Canada (Attorney General), an Alberta court declared that the $1,000 deposit requirement to be a candidate under the Canada Elections Act is unconstitutional in that it violates the right to be a candidate under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Although this decision was rendered in Alberta, the Canada Elections Act sets out uniform federal electoral rules across Canada. In order to maintain their consistency across jurisdictions, EC's long-standing practice has been to apply such court decisions respecting the constitutionality of the Canada Elections Act uniformly across Canada. The Alberta court decision is binding until it is stayed by a court or overturned on appeal.