Form letters to help First Nations vote in upcoming election

Form letters to help First Nations vote in upcoming election

Sept. 14, 2015. Elections Canada says it will accept special form letters from First Nations residents. “One of the problems we have in this country is that often on reserves there’s no address at all,” said Chief Electoral Officer Marc Maynard. The letters can be downloaded from the Assembly of First Nations website and then signed by a band
administrator to confirm an individual is a band resident.

Elections Canada will also be printing election information in 15 Native languages. Voter turnout on reserves has been between 15 and 21 percentage points lower than that of the general population since 2004. The average turnout for eligible
voters on First Nations reserves in 2011 was reported at 44 per cent, compared to an overall 61.1 per cent turnout. An analysis of Elections Canada data by polling website threehundredeight.com found that in the 2011 election, the NDP polled 12 points higher on reserve than in the general population, pulling in 43 per cent support on reserves.