2018–19 Departmental Results Report

Results: What We Achieved

Core Responsibility: Electoral Administration and Oversight

Description

Elections Canada's core responsibility is to prepare for, deliver, and report on federal elections and referendums in accordance with the legislative framework, while ensuring integrity throughout the electoral process.

Canadians Can Exercise Their Democratic Right to Vote

In 2018–19, Elections Canada focused on initiatives to improve the voting experience, implement new legislation, simplify processes for election workers, and strengthen electoral security to ensure that the electoral process is inclusive and accessible for all Canadians.

During this reporting period, the agency delivered five by-elections. Summaries of the official voting results for the two by-elections held in 2018 may be viewed in the Report on the 2018 By-elections.^Footnote i Results for the three by-elections held in early 2019 will be published in 2020.

Over the course of the fiscal year, Elections Canada wrapped up initial preparations for the 43rd general election. In the spring of 2019, the agency began an extensive three-week election simulation exercise in five electoral districts to test business processes, information and information technology systems in a setting that closely resembles an actual general election. Election workers were hired and trained, and participated in simulated voting exercises which included changes introduced by the Elections Modernization Act.^{Footnote ii} The exercise also gave some of the new returning officers an opportunity to observe local office operations and exchange with more experienced colleagues.

Overall, the simulation exercise confirmed Elections Canada's readiness to deliver a general election and identified a few areas where procedures could be refined. These final adjustments were made in late spring 2019.

Actions Taken to Improve Voter Satisfaction

Elections Canada worked closely with returning officers and field liaison officers to harmonize its business processes, streamline processes at the polls, and increase voter satisfaction. The agency completed the following activities:

• Simplified processes for registering and voting for faster and easier voting services
• Increased the number of planned on-campus voting locations to 119 for the 43rd general election
• Improved the integrity of the National Register of Electors by comparing Elections Canada's list with information on permanent residents and foreign nationals provided by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada in order to remove records of non-citizens
• Reached out to 250,000 households to encourage Canadians to verify and update their information on the National Register of Electors
• Renewed data-sharing agreements with electoral management bodies and partners to improve the coverage and currency of the National Register of Electors
• Sent information packages to 209,000 18-year-old Canadians, encouraging them to register online
• Reviewed tools and training programs for field staff to enhance service delivery and reduce errors
• Implemented a new case management system for tracking and routing public and media enquiries to subject matter experts and giving employees access to credible and reliable sources of information

Minimizing the Distance Needed to Travel to Polling Stations

The agency created a new method to calculate the proximity of electors' residences to their assigned polling stations. The method used the road map system and data from previous elections and applied service standards to ensure consistency across the country. The process optimizes the location of polling sites and the geographical configuration of polling divisions and advance polling districts while minimizing the distance electors need to travel.

Working with Indigenous Communities

Elections Canada worked with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities to offer better election services in their communities. One improvement, which is guided by the recently updated polling station selection policy, is to increase the number of advance and election day polling stations on reserves. Returning officers began reaching out to these communities in the summer of 2018.

Elections Canada has also launched a pilot project in 87 remote communities across 27 electoral districts where barriers to registration and voting were found to be higher than elsewhere. This project will help returning officers build ongoing relationships with community leaders to plan election services for their communities. Through the Elector Services in Remote Indigenous Communities project, Elections Canada completed the following activities:

• The Chief Electoral Officer wrote to leaders of 350 Indigenous communities to introduce their returning officer and explain the election services they provide.
• Returning officers participated in intercultural learning activities to build confidence and develop resources for working with Indigenous communities in targeted electoral districts.
• Returning officers completed outreach activities focusing on sharing information about registration and voting services with the Indigenous communities in their electoral districts.

Teaching Young People about Democracy

Elections Canada renewed its civic education program and made it available to educators in September 2018. The program helps teach young people about democracy, electoral systems, civic engagement, and active citizenship.

Educational resources made available included lesson plans accompanied by videos, infographics, fact sheets, case studies, maps, and other hands-on tools. A learning website^{Footnote iii} and social media accounts^{Footnote iv} targeted to teachers were also made available.

To increase awareness of the program, the Chief Electoral Officer visited classrooms in Halifax, Winnipeg, and Toronto. Elections Canada employees attended teachers' conferences across Canada and full-time education coordinators offered professional development services as part of pilot projects in Manitoba and Toronto.

The Voter Information Campaign

Elections Canada finalized preparations for its Voter Information Campaign. The campaign will give electors information about where, when, and the ways they can register and cast their vote during the 43rd general election. It will include a suite of advertisements and information with new branding and consistent messaging for a variety of media channels including print, digital, television, radio, social media, and out-of-home media in order to reach the widest possible audience.

Better Community Relations

Elections Canada enhanced the Community Relations Officer program for the next general election. Community relations officers work with local leaders to improve access to registration and voting in communities. These officers provide information on where, when, and the ways to register and vote, as well as on the tools and services available to voters. For the 43rd general election, the program will include opportunities for Métis and official language minority communities.

A Fair and Transparent Electoral Process Free of Undue Influence

Elections Canada worked to implement a number of changes to support a strong regulatory framework and to protect the integrity of the federal electoral process.

Advice to Parliamentarians

Throughout 2018–19, Elections Canada provided expertise and advice to parliamentarians. The Chief Electoral Officer and senior executives appeared 12 times before parliamentary committees to discuss:

• The implementation of Bill C-76^{Footnote v}
• New rules regarding political financing
• Barriers to women in politics
• Elections Canada's role in safeguarding electoral integrity
• Protection of electors' personal information
• Elections Canada's Interim and Main Estimates

Additionally, more than 20 research projects were conducted and initiated to address electoral modernization, legislative reforms, and emerging issues. Data was collected and information was shared through:

• By-election surveys of electors
• Surveys of election administrators on communication practices
• Field research at the polls in collaboration with Elections Ontario
• Research and policy analysis on disinformation, digital platforms and privacy

Working Together to Safeguard Elections

Elections Canada worked with Canada's lead security agencies, the Commissioner of Canada Elections, and a number of stakeholders to limit the likelihood and impact of potential threats, cyber-attacks, and attempts at disinformation. Initiatives such as the Voter Information Campaign, the registry of third parties, and requirements for political advertisements on online platforms will give Canadians transparency and reliable information.

To help protect the integrity of Canada's federal elections, the agency launched an archive on its website of its advertising and communication products. Canadians will be able to check this archive to ensure that the messages they receive during an election are official Elections Canada messages.

Elections Canada updated its risk management framework for the general election and other analytical tools to expand internal capacity and capabilities for identifying security and integrity incidents, patterns, and trends. This allows the agency to remain well-positioned to detect and respond to emerging security concerns related to the administration of elections.

Elections Canada also developed tools to respond to such incidents and a mechanism to promote timely and effective information and business intelligence sharing across the agency.

Strong Regulatory Framework

The Elections Modernization Act^{Footnote vi} received Royal Assent on December 13, 2018. The legislation will modernize electoral administration in Canada, make the voting process more inclusive and reinforce its integrity. The changes include:

• Providing Elections Canada with more flexibility in the administration of the process at the polls
• Improving the political financing regime to increase transparency and strengthen the level playing field
• Regulating more extensively the activities of third parties, both before and after the writ, and their use of foreign funds
• Combating emerging threats related to digital interference and disinformation

In January 2019, the Chief Electoral Officer published a notice in the Canada Gazette^{Footnote vii} allowing several provisions of the Elections Modernization Act to come into force. These provisions included elements such as a maximum 50-day election period, preventing by-elections within nine months of a fixed-date general election, and broadening the Chief Electoral Officer's communications mandate.

During the reporting period, Elections Canada and the Office of the Commissioner of Canada Elections worked to prepare for the administrative reintegration of the Commissioner within the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer following the coming into force of certain provisions of the Elections Modernization Act.^{Footnote viii} The transfer occurred on April 1, 2019.

To further support a strong regulatory regime, An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act (political financing)^{Footnote ix} came into force on December 21, 2018. The Act introduced notice and reporting requirements for certain regulated fundraising events. It also harmonizes the rules for contest expenses of nomination and leadership contestants with those already in place for candidates.

All additional provisions of the Elections Modernization Act were brought into force in early 2019. All changes are now reflected in the consolidation of the Canada Elections Act.^{Footnote x} Elections Canada completed preparations to ensure that all mandatory changes would be implemented for the 43rd general election.

Political Entities Service Centre

Elections Canada piloted the Political Entities Service Centre portal during the January 25 by-election and the spring 2019 simulation exercise. This portal offers a secure and modern self-service approach to:

• Submitting candidate nominations
• Confirming candidates
• Accessing the online electoral product repository for candidate-related services including maps and lists of electors
• Preparing, submitting, and managing party financial reports

Going forward, the portal will continue to facilitate secure access and compliance for candidate-related services, including the nomination and political financing processes. It will also provide the avenue to the paperless audit of financial reports. In early 2019–20, the portal was launched nationally in advance of the 43rd general election.

New Training to Facilitate Compliance

Elections Canada developed hands-on training for political entities and a broader range of online and in-person training for political parties to facilitate compliance with the financial regime. In an effort to ensure election workers understand and meet their obligations, Elections Canada also developed training programs based on feedback received from the field. This new training regime was successfully tested during the 2018–19 by-elections.

Compliance with Legislation

Throughout the year, Elections Canada continued to monitor political entities' compliance with electoral legislation. Audits of election returns were conducted to ensure confidence in the administration of elections and legitimacy of results. In 2018–19, the by-election audits were completed for:

• October 23, 2017 (9 returns)
• December 11, 2017 (24 returns)
• June 18, 2018 (6 returns)

Elections Canada advanced its initiative to modernize the political financing audit process for all political entities to improve the overall efficiency and effectiveness of the program. The agency has reached several milestones including a multi-year audit plan, and a new methodology for the audit of political entities that includes updated selection criteria, and updates to guidance materials for political entities. Work also progressed on new and updated tools for auditors.

Results Achieved

Departmental Results	Performance Indicators	Target	Actual Resultsnote 1
Canadians Can Exercise Their Democratic Right to Vote	Percentage of polling stations that meet Elections Canada’s key accessibility criteria	100% by March 31, 2019	2018–19: 97% 2017–18: 99% 2016–17: 98%
	Percentage of electors included in the National Register of Electors	At least 94% by March 31, 2019	2018–19: 94% 2017–18: 92% 2016–17: 93%
	Percentage of electors who are aware of the main voting methods	At least 90% of electors are aware of the option to vote at a polling station on election day by March 31, 2019	2018–19: 86% note 2 2017–18: N/A 2016–17: N/A
		At least 70% of electors are aware of the option to vote at an advance poll by March 31, 2019	2018–19: 61%note 2 2017–18: N/A 2016–17: N/A
	Percentage of electors’ residences that are within a given road distance of their assigned polling station	At least 95% by March 31, 2019	2018–19: 98% 2017–18: 95% 2016–17: 90%
A Fair and Transparent Electoral Process Free of Undue Influence	Percentage of Canadians who have a positive perception of the administration of elections	Electors: at least 95% by March 31, 2019	2018–19: 92% note 2 2017–18: 91% 2016–17: 92%
		Candidates: at least 85% by March 31, 2020	2018–19: N/A note 2 2017–18: N/A 2016–17: N/A
	Percentage of excess contributions that are returned to contributors or remitted to the Chief Electoral Officer	At least 90% by March 31, 2021	2018–19: N/A 2017–18: 100% 2016–17: N/A
	Percentage of candidates’ campaign returns that Elections Canada posts online within 10 business days of filing	100% by March 31, 2019	2018–19: 83% 2017–18: 89% 2016–17: N/A
	Election officers’ level of compliance with procedures at the polls	A deviation under 2% for key controls by March 31, 2019	2018–19: within tolerance 2017–18: within tolerance 2016–17: within tolerance
		A deviation under 11% for secondary controls by March 31, 2019	2018–19: within tolerance 2017–18: within tolerance 2016–17: within tolerance

^{note 1} Each year reflects the following number of by-elections:

2018–19: 5 by-elections
2017–18: 11 by-elections
2016–17: 1 by-election

^{note 2} Targets were based on general election survey results. By-elections are not comparable to general election results nor should they be compared to other by-election results.

Budgetary Financial Resources (dollars)

2018–19 Main Estimates	2018–19 Planned Spending	2018–19 Total Authorities Available for Use	2018–19 Actual Spending (Authorities Used)	2018–19 Difference (Actual minus Planned)
94,074,700	94,074,700	121,937,558	120,907,167	26,832,467

The difference of $26.8M is mainly due to the conduct of five by-elections, the preparation for the 43rd general election and the reprofiling of expenditures in support of electoral services modernization projects that were not part of the agency's Main Estimates. 

Human Resources (Full-Time Equivalents)

2018–19 Planned	2018–19 Actual	2018–19 Difference (Actual minus Planned)
475	502	27

The difference of 27 full-time equivalents is mainly a result of the requirement for additional temporary employees for electoral services modernization projects and the preparation for the 43rd general election.

Internal Services

Description

Internal Services are those groups of related activities and resources that the federal government considers to be services in support of programs and required to meet an organization's corporate obligations. Internal Services refers to the activities and resources of the 10 distinct service categories that support program delivery, regardless of an organization's Internal Services delivery model.

The 10 service categories are: 

• Acquisition Management Services
• Communications Services
• Financial Management Services
• Human Resources Management Services
• Information Management Services
• Information Technology Services
• Legal Services
• Materiel Management Services
• Management and Oversight Services
• Real Property Management Services

Results

In 2018–19, Internal Services continued to support the agency's efforts to ensure that Canadians can exercise their democratic right to vote as part of a fair and transparent electoral process free of undue influence.

Elections Canada approved the Security Strategy and Departmental Security Plan in the fall of 2018. The agency undertook key initiatives to improve cybersecurity, focusing on higher-risk online system areas, including:

• Modernization of the agency's network infrastructure and data centres
• Improved security and credential management
• Improvements to organizational information management practices

The agency established a new Security Steering Committee that developed incident management protocols for the 43rd general election. The agency also worked with lead security agencies to share information, discuss roles, responsibilities and protocols under potential scenarios, and plan communications.

Elections Canada's business continuity plan was in the final stages of revision by March 31, 2019, to enable critical services to be delivered to stakeholders in the event of a major incident.

Budgetary Financial Resources (dollars)

2018–19 Main Estimates	2018–19 Planned Spending	2018–19 Total Authorities Available for Use	2018–19 Actual Spending (authorities used)	2018–19 Difference (Actual minus Planned)
41,137,302	41,137,302	63,387,075	62,841,306	21,704,004

The difference of $21.7M is mainly due to the preparation for the 43rd general election and the reprofiling of expenditures for asset renewal projects that were not part of the agency's Main Estimates.

Further details can be found in the Financial Statement Highlights section of this report.

Human Resources (Full-Time Equivalents)

2018–19 Planned	2018–19 Actual	2018–19 Difference (Actual minus Planned)
208	216	8

The difference of 8 full-time equivalents is mainly a result of the requirement for additional temporary employees for the preparation for the 43rd general election.

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