Canada’s top election official will face questioning by MPs over a series of voting irregularities in the April 28 federal election, including unexplained poll closures and lost ballots that triggered a court challenge.Blacklock's Reporter says Chief Electoral Officer Stéphane Perrault is expected to appear before the House affairs committee after a Bloc Québécois motion to investigate election management passed unanimously. The motion, brought forward by MP Christine Normandin (Saint Jean–Que.), calls for a full review of the federal voting process, including potential reforms to the Canada Elections Act.“The public could also testify. This may be new information,” said Normandin, noting that political party representatives who witnessed problems may also be called..Committee chair Chris Bittle, Liberal MP for St. Catharines, Ont., said Perrault would be asked to appear as early as Tuesday. “It is the only matter before us right now,” he said.Perrault publicly apologized on April 30 for the abrupt closure of polling stations in the northern Québec riding of Abitibi–Baie James–Nunavik–Eeyou. The Liberals won the riding with a turnout of just 47.6%, well below the national average..A second Québec riding, Terrebonne, is now the subject of a court case after Elections Canada acknowledged it failed to process valid mail-in ballots. The Liberals won that contest by a single vote.Further irregularities surfaced on May 7 when Elections Canada confirmed that 822 mail-in ballots had been misplaced in 74 contests across the country, including at a returning office in Coquitlam, B.C. Officials claimed the errors did not affect the results in any riding.Election managers also acknowledged that website notices listing poll locations on election day were incorrect, though no explanation has been offered.Bloc MP Sébastien Lemire (Abitibi–Témiscamingue, Que.) demanded accountability. “We are demanding transparency from Elections Canada,” he said June 2. “We demand answers.”
