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Facebook vote swapping group deemed "legal" by Elections Canada

by Tina Kells | September 29, 2008 at 12:24 pm

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A Facebook vote swapping group, the Anti-Harper Vote Swap, has been deemed legal by Elections Canada. The group first popped up on Facebook shortly after the election was announced, and quickly grew in numbers, to more than 5,000 this week. The group encourages people in tightly contested ridings to swap votes in order bolster their Party's numbers in Parliament.

Vote swapping works like this; a voter in a hotly contested riding between a Liberal and a Tory candidate, swaps votes with an NDP supporter in a different riding where the NDP and Tory candidates are neck-and-neck. By swapping, it is hoped that the NDP will win in one riding, the Liberals in another, and the Tories will lose in both,effectively diluting Conservative authority in government.

Questions were raised by Mat Savelli of Hamilton, Ontario, about the legality of the scheme, which caused Elections Canada to look into the matter. Last week, Elections Canada declared the practice of "vote swapping" to be legal, but issued a warning for people who are thinking of trading their vote.

James Hale, a spokesman for the federal agency, said the act of encouraging someone to vote in a particular way is allowed under the Elections Act.

It's also acceptable for people to invite voters to participate in an organized strategic voting plan, whether on the internet or through other means, he said.

But, he said, "electors should be cautious for a couple of reasons."

Voters could potentially be misled by someone acting under a false identity who tricks them into voting a particular way, which would be an offence under the Elections Act.

Since people cast ballots alone in a voting booth, it is also difficult to verify whether they actually voted as promised.

Also, the agency warned, it is illegal for money or "material benefit" to pass hands as part of a voting arrangement.

"It's not an offence to tell your friend you think they should vote in a certain way, and it's not an offence to say 'Yeah, I think that's a great idea.' It is an offence to accept money or to offer money for that," said Hale.