Longest Ballot Committee
The Longest Ballot Committee is a Rhinoceros Party affiliated[1] political group in Canada known for flooding electoral ballots with a large number of independent candidates in protest of the first-past-the-post (FPTP) voting system and other electoral reform related issues.[2] The group has gained national attention, most notably during the 2022 federal by-election in Mississauga-Lakeshore and the 2023 federal by-election in Winnipeg South Centre.[3]
The committee's actions have prompted amendments to election laws to accommodate a greater number of names on the ballots[4] and generated significant controversy.[5]
Elections in which the Longest Ballot Committee participated[edit]
- 2021 Canadian federal election, Saint Boniface—Saint Vital: 21 candidate names on the ballot[6]
- 2022 Mississauga-Lakeshore federal by-election: 40 candidate names on the ballot[7]
- 2023 Winnipeg South Centre federal by-election: 48 candidate names on the ballot
- 2023 Kitchener Centre provincial by-election, 18 candidate names on the ballot[8]
- 2024 Toronto St. Paul's federal by-election: 84 candidate names on the ballot[9]
References[edit]
- ^ Elliott, Blair (2023-04-19). "Horning In". Maisonneuve. Retrieved 2024-06-09.
- ^ Passifiume, Bryan (2024-06-03). "Why Mitch Marner and Alberta have become big issues in a record-breaking Toronto byelection". The National Post. Retrieved 2024-06-09.
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: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Passifiume, Bryan (2023-12-27). "Long ballot activists planning to make short work of Toronto byelection". The National Post.
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: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "17-B-2023-02 – Adaptations to ensure that the names of all candidates can appear on the ballot and to bring related amendments to voting procedures and counting votes". Elections Canada. 2024-06-19. Retrieved 2024-06-09.
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: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Posted, Shannon Sampert (2023-06-15). "Opinion: 48 candidates is no voting panacea". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved 2024-06-09.
- ^ Kives, Bartley (2021-09-03). "Rhino Party charges at broken Liberal promise by signing up independents to run in Manitoba riding". CBC. Retrieved 2024-06-09.
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: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Mississauga-Lakeshore byelection will have at least 40 candidates, a national record". www.ipolitics.ca. Retrieved 2024-06-09.
- ^ Bueckert, Kate (2023-11-20). "18 people on the Kitchener Centre byelection ballot is a 'novelty' but will it result in more votes?". CBC. Retrieved 2024-06-09.
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: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "List of candidates, Toronto--St. Paul's (Ontario)". Elections Canada. Retrieved 2024-06-09.