Voters in the Montreal riding of LaSalle-Émard-Verdun could have to choose between a hundred candidates, on a piece of paper longer than a metre, if enough Canadians add their names to a protest movement.
Sébastien Corriveau has made it his mission to recruit as many political opponents as possible on the Internet, in preparation for the upcoming federal by-elections, which are due to be called by the end of the month.
“At our last performance, we had a ballot of 84 names in Toronto-St. Paul’s: can we beat that record?” he signs on the social network Reddit, under the alias Sébastien CoRhino, in reference to his position as leader of the Rhinoceros Party of Canada.
His goal: to demonstrate by absurdity the problems posed by the current voting system. He hopes to have more than 100 candidates, in addition to himself, compete for the seat left vacant by the departure of former Justice Minister David Lametti. Contacted by The duty, He describes his action as an “act of protest.”
“We are facing an impasse, where the party that wins the elections has the leisure to write the electoral law. It is as if we were playing a game, and the winner of the game writes the rules of the game. But here we are talking about Canadian democracy,” he protests.
Mr. Corriveau is one of a handful of volunteers with the cross-Canada Longest Ballot Committee. The group successfully registered 75 volunteers as candidates in the Toronto-St. Paul’s by-election held on June 24, bringing the total number of names on the ballot to 84. That’s a federal record.
A long bulletin
The ballot on which voters were required to mark an X was massive, measuring 30 cm wide and 90 cm long (12 inches by 35.5 inches), adding to the burden on Elections Canada to count each of them.
The latest results had to be released early in the morning, confirming Conservative candidate Don Stewart’s narrow victory by 633 votes in what was considered a stronghold of Justin Trudeau’s party. Experts say LaSalle-Émard-Verdun now represents a barometer for measuring the resilience of Quebec’s Liberal strongholds.
Since it is not mandatory to show up where you live, any citizen over the age of 18, from anywhere in the country, is invited to participate in the effort to force an even bigger ballot in this riding. They are simply asked to fill out the necessary paperwork, and volunteers will collect the required 100 local voter signatures on their behalf.
“It’s a relatively simple process,” confirms Félix-Antoine Hamel, a 45-year-old musician from Lanaudière who was among the candidates in Toronto-St. Paul’s. He holds the record as the only federal candidate in Canadian history to have received no votes without withdrawing.
Moreover, no other candidate received more than 100 votes, except for those representing the five largest national parties. Regardless, Sébastien Corriveau speaks of a “victory” that he immortalized by printing a giant version of the ridiculously long ballot. “It’s a work of art. I do administrative art,” he jokes, while admitting that his approach may have upset several citizens.
No limit
In an email, Elections Canada clarified that there are no restrictions on the number of candidates who can run in the election, since it is a fundamental right of every citizen. The institution is preparing to take stock of the actions it has taken to facilitate voting in the most recent by-election.
On social media, the Longest Ballot committee likes to rehash an old post by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that said the 2015 election would be the last under the first-past-the-post system. The promise was abandoned in 2017. The one made by Quebec Premier François Legault suffered the same fate in 2021.
“I understand their desire to move the issue forward for real electoral reform. We are defending this position,” said Craig Sauvé, New Democratic Party (NDP) candidate in LaSalle-Émard-Verdun. The Liberals, Conservatives and Bloc Québécois have not yet named a candidate for this by-election, which must be held no later than September 4. The Prime Minister has until July 30 to call it.
Unlike Félix-Antoine Hamel, who plans to run again in Montreal by encouraging voters not to vote for him, Mr. Corriveau is truly seeking “a one-year mandate,” until the next federal election, scheduled for October 2025 at the latest. “So do something special, send a rhinoceros MP to Parliament!” he said to conclude the interview.