Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2024/07/01/this-fellow-is-the-first-political-candidate-in-canadas-history-to-receive-zero-votes-in-a-federal-election.html
…
5 Likes
You’d think he’d at least vote for himself – that’s how it worked in high school elections – the lowest candidates at least had one vote.
3 Likes
He couldn’t even vote for himself because he doesn’t live in Toronto-St. Paul’s.
14 Likes
Can any Canadians chime in on why someone can run for a spot at a place they don’t live?
4 Likes
There’s no formal requirement.
6 Likes
I believe you can run in a riding in which you don’t live, but you have reside in the same province. I agree that it doesn’t make sense.
3 Likes
The “independent candidates” succeeded in that the conservative candidate won over the liberal, by slightly less votes than the total that those candidates received. This was a very liberal riding but the federal Liberals are polling low everywhere in Canada.
4 Likes
That is just weird. But I know it may have been part of of the British insanity Canada inherited. Winston Churchill was an MP for Dundee, Scotland, a place where he had never lived and hardly visited.
4 Likes
Right. Just like the rules don’t say a dog can’t play basketball!
3 Likes
To my mind, it’s cooler to receive zero votes (whatever the reason!).
Receiving a single vote that everyone knows is your own is a bit pathetic.
Zero votes is a statement! Zero votes is rock n’ roll!
5 Likes
“Kevin Phillips Bong. You polled no votes at all. Not a sausage. Bugger all. Are you at all disappointed with this performance?”
4 Likes
do you have to be canadian? maybe i should run for mayor of toronto.
(i don’t smoke crack, so i dunno if i’d win 
)
Yes.
Rules of Membership for the House
With few exceptions, anyone who is qualified to vote can run for a seat in the House of Commons. The qualifications and disqualifications for candidacy in a federal election are set down in the Canada Elections Act, [70] the Parliament of Canada Act [71] and the Constitution Act, 1982. [72]
As stated in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, “every citizen of Canada has the right to vote in an election of members of the House of Commons or of a legislative assembly and to be qualified for membership therein”. [73] Thus, any Canadian citizen at least 18 years of age on polling day, who is qualified as an elector, is eligible to be a candidate in an election. [74] A candidate must have established residency somewhere in Canada but not necessarily in the constituency where he or she is seeking election. [75] A candidate may seek election in only one electoral district. [76]
Toronto has a residency requirement.
To run for mayor or city councillor, on the day the nomination paper is filed, a person must be:
- A Canadian citizen
- At least 18 years of age
- A resident of the City of Toronto, or
- An owner or tenant of land in the City of Toronto, or the spouse of the owner or tenant
- Not legally prohibited from voting
- Not disqualified by any legislation from holding municipal office
Nothing about crack, so maybe that’s just a tradition?
5 Likes
Do you have to pay a deposit to be on the ballot in Canada?
(In the UK you have to put up £500, which you get back if you get more than 5% of the votes. Not getting enough votes to win back your deposit is the most ignominious failure for a British politician).
1 Like
Do they do custom paper sizes for ballots; or is that A4 printed in landscape or A3 printed in portrait?
Ted Cruz should go back to Canada. He’d do well as a unity candidate.
You don’t have to be on crack here, but it helps.
1 Like
This topic was automatically closed after 5 days. New replies are no longer allowed.
