Online voting would help boost turnout, Sault councillors told

Sudbury -

Offering a way for people to vote remotely was a popular response to a recent survey in Sault Ste. Marie aimed at finding ways to boost turnout in municipal elections.

Councillors have tasked city staff to come up with suggestions to boost turnout. In 2018, barely 40 per cent of eligible voters cast ballots. Local politicians are hoping to find ways to reverse that trend.

Residents were surveyed between April 9 and May 15. It was conducted online because of the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 60 per cent of people who responded said they would be more likely to vote if there were ways to cast a ballot remotely.

"Online voting was the most popular remote voting option (60 per cent), followed by vote by mail (16 per cent), and finally vote by phone (four per cent)," the report headed to council June 28 said.

"Reasons for being in favour of online voting included: easy; convenient; fast; secure; modern; accessible; vote from anywhere and any time of day; and due to the pandemic."

However, the five per cent of people who were unsure about online voting said they were concerned about things like voter fraud, lack of trust and security concerns.

In the 2018 election, Greater Sudbury was one of dozens municipalities to offer online voting. A total of 81.79 per cent of all the ballots were cast online, with turnout at 45 per cent, compared to the provincial average of 37.6 per cent.

However, the 2018 vote was marred by technical problems that forced the vote to be extended an extra day in Sudbury and other affected communities.

And voter turnout actually declined by about five per cent compared to 2014, when the city had a competitive race for mayor, and three referendum questions were added to the municipal ballot.

In Sault Ste. Marie, the staff report said turnout was particularly poor in Wards 4 and 5, as well as among young people.

"Voter turnout in 2018 was lowest among those aged 18 through 45, which is consistent with past federal elections trends," the report said.

"Other northern Ontario communities cited additional voting options, a mayoral race and an aggressive media campaign as reasons for higher than average voter turnout."

Sault Ste. Marie's municipal election will take place on Oct. 24, 2022. Read the full report here.