Glitch at the polls

Voters told they already cast a ballot

The Record was contacted yesterday by citizens who went to vote at the St. George’s polling station in Lennoxville for the Saint François riding and were told that they had already voted in the advance poll.

According to Saint-françois Returning Officer Marjorie Tyroler, the issue was the result of human error, but did not mean that another vote had been cast in someone else’s name.

“People make mistakes,” Tyroler said, “It happens every election.”

In the 20 years she has worked as a returning officer, Tyroler said she has never heard of a person who succeeded in voting twice.

The concerned citizens who contacted The Record were worried that a vote had been cast in their name for ‘who knows which party.’ Tyroler said that does not happen. More likely, when the names of voters who presented in the advance polls were entered into the register, an error was made.

As for the people who were told they had already voted, they were still permitted to cast a ballot after making a solemn declaration that they were who they said they were, and this was their first and only vote in the current election.

“It was scary,” one voter said, taken aback when she was first told her vote had already been cast.

Tyroler said that this was the first year that the director of elections was using an electronic system to mark the electoral list, which could account for the error.

She added that her office had received around four calls total regarding that issue throughout the entire riding.

According to the alleged double voters, the scrutineer for their voting station said that the issue came up six times at her station.

That was at 1 p.m.

When asked how many instances there had been at the St. George’s polling station, Tyroler said that she contacted the voting station manager and was told there had only been a problem with one couple.

Upon further investigation, Tyroler confirmed that some other cases had been brought to her attention.

“It is possible there was human error in marking the votes,” Tyroler said, “but the electoral process is in tact.”

“It’s very important that people be able to exercise their right to vote,” she said, explaining that the procedure of asking for a solemn declaration is in place to guarantee that no one is deprived of that right.

“I’m convinced it’s human error,” Tyroler said. “It’s important to bring these cases up, but the public should not worry.”

“This is my sixth election, I’ve never seen any indication of fraudulent behaviour.”

A media representative from the office of the Director of Elections told The Record that 1.1 million citizens voted in the advance polls. The way those voters are logged into the register is through codes and numbers, so there is always a margin for error, but that the process is secure.