By Michael Boda, Chief Electoral Officer of Saskatchewan
Many factors determine the health of a democracy, but each depends on freedom — freedom of speech, freedom of association, and freedom to vote. Tying it all together is a pluralistic system of political parties that lies at the heart of free and fair elections. Ultimately, though, the true test of democracy rests with each and every one of us. It hinges on our most important civic duty — to cast our votes in elections.
In a few weeks, Saskatchewan will be staging a provincial election. In recent elections, more than 225 candidates have let their names stand for election. This fall, seven political parties will be represented. The choice of who represents us and forms government is entirely yours. In other words, an election is when your voices are heard as the ultimate expression of democracy.
As Saskatchewan’s independent election management body, Elections Saskatchewan is guided by the core principles of impartiality, integrity, innovation, service and dedication. Nothing is more important for us than ensuring that elections in our province have the public’s full trust and confidence. Key to that trust and integrity is making sure that voting is accessible, easy and convenient for all. To achieve this, we’ve expanded the number of voting days, lengthened the time citizens have to cast their ballot, and we’ve instituted multiple ways to vote.
Voting Week coming
In this election, instead of a single “Election Day” voting location, where most voters have traditionally cast their ballot at—and only at—a specifically assigned geographical spot, we are now formally recognizing “Voting Week.” For five days, scheduled for October 22-26, multiple voting locations in your constituency will be open from 10 am to 7 pm. Then on October 28, the last day of voting, polls will be open for extended hours from 9 am to 8 pm. In total, you will have 56 hours of in-person voting to cast your ballot during the six days of Voting Week.
In rural constituencies there will be five to six voting locations open during Voting Week. On the last day of voting, we will add additional locations that will ensure no voter is more than 30 minutes driving time from a voting location. This means we’re making voting more convenient, with a full six days when citizens can cast their ballot in person, when they want, at the voting location of their choice.
The creation of Voting Week is a crucial step in acknowledging the need to place the voter at the centre of our democratic system. By so doing, we are broadening voters’ access to the secret ballot, introducing multiple days and multiple places to vote that offer greater convenience for eligible voters in choosing their leaders.
But that’s not all. We’re also offering multiple methods to vote.
Vote by Mail a convenient alternative
In this election we are again encouraging voters, particularly those in rural areas, to consider using the vote-by-mail option. During the 2020 election, which was held in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we introduced Vote by Mail and more than 56,000 voters took advantage of that choice.
Vote by Mail is an excellent alternative to in-person voting, especially for seniors living independently, students living outside their constituency, those who traditionally have had to travel a long distance to an in-person voting location, and others who simply want to manage their own schedule for voting.
Individuals can apply to Elections Saskatchewan for the mail-in ballot kit right now online at www.elections.sk.ca/votebymail.
Once approved, a ballot will be sent to voters as soon as the election is called. Voters can mail their completed ballot kit back to us up to and including the last day of voting week.
The vote-by-mail option is a safe and secure way to vote. Unlike in systems elsewhere, every voter must apply, provide identification, and be approved to receive a mail-in ballot. Elections Saskatchewan tracks each ballot as it moves into the postal system and knows when it has been returned for counting through a method that ensures secrecy of those ballots. When voters submit their applications, they are assigned and sent a code which allows them to return to a website that will confirm for them when their vote-by-mail kit was mailed and when it was returned and placed in a ballot box by election officials at Elections Saskatchewan.
Options for those with special needs
Finally, for citizens who are unable to leave their home to vote due to a disability and prefer not to use the vote-by-mail option, we will also offer limited homebound voting. In those cases, an election worker comes to the voter’s home so that the individual and their caregiver can cast their ballot. Elections Saskatchewan also provides voting opportunities for those living in personal care facilities or who find themselves in the hospital while voting is taking place.
To ensure voters have the information they need to vote, every registered voter will be sent a voter information card (VIC) in the mail. Or, if you prefer, registered voters can give us a call and we will send you a virtual VIC by text or email. If you are a new voter and need to register to vote, you can do all this at www.elections.sk.ca or call 1-877-958-8683.
Everyone at Elections Saskatchewan is committed to ensuring that voters have access to a convenient and secure voting experience that they can trust, as they carry out their democratic duty by casting a ballot in the upcoming provincial general election.
Michael Boda has been Chief Electoral Officer of Saskatchewan since 2012 and is a Policy Fellow at the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Policy.