Liberals face challenge of securing the vote while keeping leadership race accessible

The challenges that some registered Liberals are facing with online voting in the party’s leadership race are not unexpected, according to experts. In fact, they suggest that these difficulties may actually be a positive development.

Christopher Cochrane, a political science professor at the University of Toronto, emphasized the importance of ensuring a secure and reliable process for selecting the Prime Minister of Canada. He noted that when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau won the Liberal leadership in 2013, the voting process allowed for a new class of supporters to participate without paying a membership fee. However, with the current threat of foreign interference and the high stakes of selecting the next Prime Minister, Cochrane argues that a more stringent process is necessary.

Justice Marie-Josée Hogue, commissioner of the public inquiry into foreign interference, highlighted the vulnerability of party leadership races in her final report regarding the recent federal elections. She recommended verifying voters’ citizenship or permanent residency status and applying the Canada Elections Act to leadership contests to enhance security measures.

The current voting process for the Liberal leadership race involves multiple steps, including obtaining an electronic voter ID, verifying eligibility, and confirming identity either through the Canada Post Identity+ app or in person at a post office. While over 127,000 registered Liberals have been verified to vote, some individuals have encountered difficulties with the verification process, particularly with the mobile app and in-person options.

Despite these challenges, Mark Carney, a leading candidate in the race, has emphasized the importance of security measures to prevent foreign interference. The Liberal Party has stated that the verification process is essential to ensuring a fair and secure election.

Experts like Stewart Prest from the University of British Columbia believe that political parties must strike a balance between preventing interference and maximizing accessibility to the vote. As technology continues to evolve, parties need to adapt and improve their processes to run fair elections.

Ultimately, Cochrane believes that while some registered Liberals may be frustrated with the process, the outcome of the race is likely to reflect the preferences of the party’s core supporters. Moving forward, parties may need to align their leadership voting processes with Elections Canada standards to uphold the integrity of the electoral system.