Elections Ontario wants to make it easier for people to vote in the June 2 campaign.
To that end, Greg Essensa, Ontario’s chief electoral officer, said the number of days for advance voting has been doubled to 10 from five.
Essensa also touted Elections Ontario’s free mobile app for voter information that can be downloaded at the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store.
“It also provides you with an electronic voter information card … that you can use as a form of identification,” he said Monday.
While online voting is still not allowed in Ontario, Essensa said the new app “changes the paradigm” for elections because people can use it to check if they are registered to vote and determine the nearest polling station, among other things.
“It creates more of a one-to-one relationship (between voters and Elections Ontario) because when you sign up for the app now, you can choose how you communicate with us,” he said.
“Do you want an SMS (notification) or do you want an email? Do you want us to notify you whenever candidates have been registered in your riding? Do you want us to send notifications when the polls open?”
Elections Ontario has tested the application to ensure it is secure and that personal information is protected.
But Essensa said it is still too soon to say if or when Ontarians could ever cast their ballots digitally instead of in person at a polling station or by mail.
“I’m hesitant to say until we really get an appropriate digital identification that’s acceptable,” he said, stressing “security and integrity aspects” remain a challenge.
In the meantime, Ontario-residing Canadian citizens aged 18 years and older can vote in advance polls in all 124 ridings from 10 am to 8 pm starting May 19 through May 28 and from 9 am to 9 pm on June 2.
Those wishing to vote by mail can apply online when the writs are dropping on May 4. The deadline to apply to vote by mail is May 27 at 6 pm and a completed voting kit must be returned by 6 pm on June 2 to be counted.
There will be more than 7,000 polling stations across Ontario — up slightly from the 2018 vote — and Essensa said COVID-19 pandemic precautions are being taken at each of them.
Masks, which are not mandatory, and hand sanitizer and wet wipes will be available free and there will be floor stickers to keep people two meters apart to ensure safe physical distancing.
“We’ve been working with the chief medical officer of health. We meet every two weeks (with his office), ”he added.
Voters will see the same shields and partition barriers that were used in last September’s federal election, the chief elections officer said.
“So the one thing I want to assure Ontarians is that we’ve taken the best measures possible to ensure a safe and healthy election.”
A hiring blitz is under way to find 55,000 people to work on the election.
Essensa said paying jobs are available for as little as one day’s work and there is a need for part-time staff “particularly in the Toronto area.”
Would-be workers as young as 16 years old can apply at Elections Ontario’s website.
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