The staff entrance to Whitehorse city hall. Photo Courtesy of Macklen Linke/CKRW.
Whitehorse, YT – Internet voting could be in the cards for future municipal elections as the city looks into amending the current Elections Bylaw to boost voter turnout and improve access to voting but concerns were raised that bringing local elections to the web could be opening a door for foreign interference.
The new bylaw draft aims to take effect before the next municipal election scheduled for October, 17th. Previous municipal elections saw low voter turnout, with the number of eligible Whitehorse residents voting reaching 37 percent in the 2022 election.
The proposed changes come as the public inquiry into Foreign Interference continues to showcase the extent to which foreign actors meddle in the 2019 and 2021 Canadian federal elections. Whitehorse City Councillor Ted Laking voiced ‘serious concerns’ at the city council and referenced a CSIS document that said all levels of government including at provincial and municipal levels have been targetted.
“Why would we open the door and put ourselves at risk at a time when everybody else seems to be raising red flags, that there’s big concerns here? I think that we have a tendency in the Yukon to think we’re small and we’re far north so no one is really paying attention to us but I think that they are,” said Councilor Laking.
Past actions include entering a sister city relationship with Chortkiv, Ukraine, condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the recent inclusion of two Yukonners on Russia’s sanctioned list are all reasons to think a foreign state like Russia may want to interfere argues Laking.
Laking also argues that Whitehorse could be used as a ‘test case’ for foreign actors who may choose to target smaller municipalities as a bottom-up approach is taken to expand influence in Canada.
“We’re talking about our democracy here,” said Laking. “Why even open the risk? Nobody’s been clamoring for this over the last two and a half years that I’ve been on council, so I just don’t know why we would even open ourselves up to it at this point in time.”
Recognizing the need to provide more accessible options for the public to boost voter turnout Laking argues that other options such as advance polling and mail-in-ballots are effective alternatives. Additionally, Laking says the government can do better to listen to the public to address growing voter disenfranchisement and create a stronger sense of civil engagement.
“One of the things that I’ve heard a lot is, people often say, ‘Well, I don’t vote because I don’t feel like it actually ever changes anything. I don’t feel like governments listen to me,'” said Laking. “Part of what elected folks need to do is actually listen to folks and go out and show people that their voice matters.”
The City’s Director of Corporate Services Valerie Braga was present in the council during the discussion and stated that internet voting is already endorsed by Elections Yukon, has been used in school elections, and that there safeguards are in place to protect against interference.
Councillor Laking plans to propose an amendment removing the provision for internet voting during the city council’s meeting on Monday, April 22nd.
