Bill C-16

2nd Session, 39th Parliament,

56 Elizabeth II, 2007

house of commons of canada

BILL C-16

An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act (expanded voting opportunities)

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

CANADA ELECTIONS ACT

1. The definitions “advance polling station” and “spoiled” in subsection 2(1) of the Canada Elections Act are replaced by the following:

“advance polling station” means a polling station established for the purposes of Part 10.

“spoiled”, in relation to a ballot or a special ballot as defined in section 177, means

(a) one that has not been deposited in the ballot box but has been found by the deputy returning officer to be soiled or improperly printed; or

(b) one that is dealt with under subsection 152(1), including in relation to advance polls by virtue of subsection 167.1(1), or subsection 213(4), 242(1) or 258(3).

2. [Deleted]

3. Section 106 of the Act is replaced by the following:

106. Each returning officer shall, as soon as possible after the 7th day before polling day but no later than the 3rd day before polling day, prepare the official list of electors for each polling division for use on polling day.

4. [Deleted]

5. The Act is amended by adding the following before the heading “Establishment of Advance Polling Stations” before section 168:

Holding of Advance Polls

167.1 (1) Except as provided in this Part, an advance poll shall be conducted in the same manner as the manner in which the vote at a polling station on polling day is conducted and shall be regarded as such for all purposes of this Act.

(2) An advance polling station shall only be open between the hours of noon and 8:00 p.m. on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday the 10th, 9th, 8th and 7th days, respectively, before polling day.

167.2 Each returning officer shall, not later than Saturday the 16th day before polling day,

(a) give a notice, in the prescribed form, in the electoral district of the advance poll, that sets out the following information:

(i) the numbers of the polling divisions in every advance polling district that is established by the returning officer,

(ii) the address of each advance polling station,

(iii) the place where the deputy returning officer for each advance polling station is to count the number of votes cast at the advance polling station, and

(iv) the fact that the counting of the votes cast is to take place on polling day as soon after the close of the polling stations as possible; and

(b) send two copies of the notice to each candidate and to the Chief Electoral Officer.

First Four Days of Advance Polling

6. Sections 171 and 172 of the Act are repealed.

7. (1) The portion of subsection 175(1) of the Act before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

175. (1) At the opening of an advance polling station at noon on the first day of advance polling, the deputy returning officer shall, in full view of the candidates or their representatives who are present,

(2) The portion of subsection 175(2) of the Act before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

(2) At the close of the advance polling station at 8:00 p.m. on each of the days of advance polling, the deputy returning officer shall, in full view of the candidates or their representatives who are present,

(3) The portion of subsection 175(4) of the Act before paragraph (b) is replaced by the following:

(4) At the re-opening of the advance polling station at noon on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th days of advance polling, the deputy returning officer shall, in full view of the candidates or their representatives who are present,

(a) unseal and open the ballot box, leaving in it the sealed envelopes containing the spoiled ballots and the ballots cast on the previous day or days of advance polling;

(4) Subsection 175(6) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(6) When an advance polling station closes on each of the four days of advance polling, the candidates or their representatives may take note of the serial number of the seal on the ballot box, and may again take note of the serial number when the advance polling station is re-opened on each of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th days of advance polling and when the votes are counted on polling day.

8. [Deleted]

9. Subsection 289(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:

289. (1) At the close of the polling stations on polling day, the deputy returning officer of an advance poll shall attend with the poll clerk at the place mentioned in the notice of advance poll in subparagraph 167.2(a)(iii) to count the votes.

10. [Deleted]

CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENT TO THE REFERENDUM ACT

11. [Deleted]

COORDINATING AMENDMENTS

12. [Deleted]

COMING INTO FORCE

13. This Act comes into force three months after the day on which it is assented to unless, before then, the Chief Electoral Officer publishes a notice in the Canada Gazette that the necessary preparations for the bringing into operation of this Act have been made and that this Act may come into force accordingly, in which case it comes into force on the day on which the notice is published.