>Paying someone to vote for a candidate in a political party leadership race is clearly unethical. But last week, many Canadians were surprised to learn that it’s completely legal.
>There is no ban from Elections Canada or its provincial counterparts on cash-for-votes in leadership or nomination races; the practice generally isn’t covered by parties’ own regulations.
>The issue emerged after accusations that some Quebec Liberal Party members were paid to vote for Pablo Rodriguez when he successfully ran as leader this spring. The former federal cabinet minister denies knowledge of any wrongdoing, and says his party will conduct a full investigation.
>Federal and provincial party leadership and nomination races are almost completely unregulated. It’s a massive weak spot in Canadian democracy, and despite alarm about foreign interference in these contests in the recent years, little has been done to fix the problem.
>Elections Canada and its provincial counterparts are generally limited to overseeing candidate registration and financing. There’s little to prevent undemocratic behaviours such as intimidation, the casting of multiple ballots, and manipulation from single-issue groups and foreign powers.
>Parties have resisted attempts at regulation, arguing they are private clubs. But these are not sleepy suburban book clubs – they are organizations vying to control our governments. Many ridings have safe seats, meaning the nomination contest effectively determines who is elected. In some instances, such as the federal Liberal leadership contest won by Mark Carney, the winner takes power almost immediately.
>These races can be easily manipulated by domestic or foreign interests. The January foreign interference inquiry report [said that](https://archive.fo/o/7iqE1/https://foreigninterferencecommission.ca/fileadmin/report_volume_1.pdf) intelligence showed international students were bussed to a nomination vote to support a Liberal candidate, using fake addresses supplied by a Chinese government agent. At the time, the Liberals allowed anyone who “ordinarily lived” in Canada to vote, including foreign students.
>Under pressure, the federal Liberals brought in a requirement that people voting in its leadership race had to be Canadian citizens or permanent residents, and it verified their identities through Canada Post. However, the party still allowed members as young as 14 to vote.
>In the current federal NDP leadership race, people only need to check a box to declare they are citizens or permanent residents to become members. The party says it may follow up to verify, but the process seems lax.
1 Comment
>Paying someone to vote for a candidate in a political party leadership race is clearly unethical. But last week, many Canadians were surprised to learn that it’s completely legal.
>There is no ban from Elections Canada or its provincial counterparts on cash-for-votes in leadership or nomination races; the practice generally isn’t covered by parties’ own regulations.
>The issue emerged after accusations that some Quebec Liberal Party members were paid to vote for Pablo Rodriguez when he successfully ran as leader this spring. The former federal cabinet minister denies knowledge of any wrongdoing, and says his party will conduct a full investigation.
>Federal and provincial party leadership and nomination races are almost completely unregulated. It’s a massive weak spot in Canadian democracy, and despite alarm about foreign interference in these contests in the recent years, little has been done to fix the problem.
>Elections Canada and its provincial counterparts are generally limited to overseeing candidate registration and financing. There’s little to prevent undemocratic behaviours such as intimidation, the casting of multiple ballots, and manipulation from single-issue groups and foreign powers.
>Parties have resisted attempts at regulation, arguing they are private clubs. But these are not sleepy suburban book clubs – they are organizations vying to control our governments. Many ridings have safe seats, meaning the nomination contest effectively determines who is elected. In some instances, such as the federal Liberal leadership contest won by Mark Carney, the winner takes power almost immediately.
>These races can be easily manipulated by domestic or foreign interests. The January foreign interference inquiry report [said that](https://archive.fo/o/7iqE1/https://foreigninterferencecommission.ca/fileadmin/report_volume_1.pdf) intelligence showed international students were bussed to a nomination vote to support a Liberal candidate, using fake addresses supplied by a Chinese government agent. At the time, the Liberals allowed anyone who “ordinarily lived” in Canada to vote, including foreign students.
>Under pressure, the federal Liberals brought in a requirement that people voting in its leadership race had to be Canadian citizens or permanent residents, and it verified their identities through Canada Post. However, the party still allowed members as young as 14 to vote.
>In the current federal NDP leadership race, people only need to check a box to declare they are citizens or permanent residents to become members. The party says it may follow up to verify, but the process seems lax.