Skip to content

Kits allowing residents to vote by mail alarms school board critics

Larry Killens requests board chair and director of education to notify Premier Doug Ford
011018_rdsb_ballot
A Rainbow District School Board trustee and a member of the SOS -- Save Our Sudbury area Schools from Rainbow Board Spending Facebook group – were sounding some alarm bells last week after a photo of a Vote by Mail Kit appeared on social media. (Facebook photo)

A Rainbow District School Board trustee and a member of the SOS -- Save Our Sudbury area Schools from Rainbow Board Spending Facebook group – were sounding some alarm bells last week after a photo of a Vote by Mail Kit appeared on social media.

The mail kits are being delivered to residents in unorganized townships that don't fall within the city's municipal boundaries, but are still within the boundary for the school boards. Kits include a voting instruction sheet, a composite ballot, an inner ballot envelope coded with the with the ward, a security slip and an outer return envelope.

SOS group member Chantelle Gorham posted a photo of the slip on Sept. 27 at 4:06 p.m., writing, "Does anyone else find this a little hinkey? Townships that are unorganized and not on the voter map are getting official looking voter slips sent to them. It only has the position of trustee, and is to be mailed directly to the Rainbow School Board. I wonder how honest they will be when counting former Director Ewing’s Votes? #BuddyBallot. P.S. We don’t need Gord Ewing sticking his nose back in, and Ruth Ward is our current, and completely useless trustee. Choose wisely Folks!"

On the same day at 11:45 p.m., Rainbow Board trustee Larry Killens sent an email to Sudbury.com, saying that he found it "deeply troubling that the Rainbow District School Board appears to be receiving ballots for the upcoming election."

Killens requested that board chair Doreen Dewar and director of education Norm Blaseg notify Premier Doug Ford and Elections Ontario of this.

"In the interest of transparency and possibly our board violating conflict of interest rules, I request on an urgent basis the chair of the board consult with Elections Ontario, if not the Premier of Ontario to address this untoward activity."

City of Greater Sudbury communications officer Shannon Dowling says that mailed ballots are common practice and this has been done before in previous elections.

"An election official, who functions in the same way our city clerk's office operates, is appointed to oversee the school board election for all four boards," said Dowling. "These results are collected and then provided to the city of Greater Sudbury to be included in our final election results."

Nicole Charette, Rainbow Board's information and privacy coordinator, echoed Dowling's comments, saying this has been done for a while and that doing so is always approved at a board meeting in an election year.

"There's always a bylaw on the books and this one was approved at the board meeting on March 20," said Charette.

The vote by mail bylaw 2018-01 was given three readings and received board approval on March 20, during a meeting Killens attended via telephone according to the board's minutes.

Vote by Mail kits were approved for the following unorganized townships: Burwash, Cartier, Cascaden, Cox, Davis, Eden, Espanola Locality, Foy, Hart, Harty, Hendire, Henry Hawley, Hess, Janes, Laura, Loghrin, Manitoulin Locality, Moncrieff, Secord, Servos, Shining Tree, Street, Tilton, and Trill.

Under the bylaw that was carried on March 20, a ballot return station will be established at the Rainbow District School Board office from Monday, Oct. 15 to Friday, Oct. 19 from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. and on election day, Oct. 22 from 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.

The bylaw also indicates that voting done at the ballot return station will be conducted under the supervision of a deputy returning officer, where electors who prefer to deliver or have delivered their completed ballots, may deposit them directly into the care of the returning officer rather than forwarding them by mail.


Comments

Verified reader

If you would like to apply to become a verified commenter, please fill out this form.