NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
Voters hoping to have their say in the upcoming federal election will need identification and Sahtu MLA Norman Yakeleya said he doesn't expect the new requirement to cause problems in small NWT communities.

Pieces of ID with name, or name and address, accepted for federal election Accepted pieces with your name health card Canadian passport birth certificate certificate of Canadian citizenship citizenship card social insurance number card Indian status card Canadian Forces identity card Veterans Affairs health card old age security card hospital card medical clinic card label on a prescription container identity bracelet issued by a hospital or long-term care facility blood donor card CNIB card credit card debit card employee card student identity card public transportation card library card liquor identity card parolee card firearms licence licence or card issued for fishing, trapping or hunting Accepted pieces with your name and address utility bill (e.g. electricity; water; telecommunications services including telephone, cable or satellite) bank statement credit union statement credit card statement personal cheque government statement of benefits government cheque or cheque stub pension plan statement residential lease or sub-lease mortgage contract or statement income tax assessment property tax assessment or evaluation vehicle ownership insurance certificate, policy or statement correspondence issued by a school, college or university letter from a public curator, public guardian or public trustee targeted revision form from Elections Canada to residents of long-term care facilities letter of confirmation of residence from a First Nations band or reserve or an Inuit local authority letter of confirmation of residence, letter of stay, admission form or statement of benefits from one of the following designated establishments: student residence seniors' residence long-term care facility shelter soup kitchen Source: Elections Canada

The Fair Elections Act, introduced last year, scraps a vouching system which allowed voters who are not able to produce identification to let somebody else guarantee who they are. The act is being contested by the Council of Canadians and the Canadian Federation of Students on the grounds that they feel the act makes it more difficult for voters to prove residency and identity at the polling stations.

According to Election Canada's website voters will now need to produce either one piece of government-issued photo ID, one piece of paperwork with the voter's name on it and another piece of paperwork with the voter's name and address. Conversely, a voter can show two pieces of identification with their name on it and have another voter with proper photo ID - who knows where the voter lives - vouch for the voter's identity. Under the new act, only one person can vouch for another.

Yakeleya said a larger percentage of voters in small NWT communities turned out to vote in the last federal election than did in larger centres, and while this change does require voters to do a little more legwork before the fall, the list of approved ID is long.

"I don't see it being a major hurdle," he said. "There's a whole list of IDs (that are acceptable) but if they wait until the last minute before they're going to vote, of course they're going to have an issue. A lot of people have (the right paperwork) already, so I don't see it being much of an issue in smaller communities."

Weledeh MLA Bob Bromley disagrees. He said changes to the act could be tantamount to "election engineering."

Bromley says the new rules will prevent some constituents of his territorial riding from taking part in the fall election if they don't get identification in time.

"It takes away the voice of the people," said Bromley. "In the last federal election, in many ridings, the difference came down to a few dozen individuals. It's almost election engineering ... by the Conservative government."

Previously, voters could identify themselves using only their mail-out voter card and could even show up at the polls with nothing at all and have someone else vouch for their identity and place of residence.

Bromley says the voter identification requirements for the territorial election aren't nearly as demanding.

"Ours are far more realistic for our population," he said.

Not only are territorial voters allowed to vouch for another person who doesn't have ID, they're allowed to vouch for several others, said Bromley.

He said when he was sitting as chair of the Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures, its research found a large number of NWT voters don't have ID.

"I think it was up to 50 per cent in some small communities did not have two pieces of ID," he said.

NWT MP Dennis Bevington could not be reached for comment before press time.

Lynda Comerford, returning officer for the Yellowknives Dene First Nation (YKDFN), said the change could cause complications for voters in Ndilo and Dettah, since vouching is a regular practice when voters hit the polls during band council elections.

"It could certainly be an issue," she said. "I know that there is a lot of vouching during the YKDFN elections."

John Enright, spokesperson for Elections Canada, said people who don't have a fixed address can get a letter of confirmation from an administrator at a homeless shelter which will enable them to vote provided they can produce one piece of identification with their name on it. He said they can also vote through attestation - having another person with proper identification vouch for them at the polling station.

However, he said, they'll need to produce two pieces of identification with their name on it in that case, so it might be more convenient to obtain a letter of confirmation.

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