Voter turnout among federal prisoners has sharply declined in recent years, according to new data from Elections Canada. Blacklock's Reporter says the high participation rate of 50.5% in the 2015 election now stands out as an exception, with turnout falling to 40% in 2019 and 41% in 2021. Elections Canada has offered no clear explanation for the drop.Chief Electoral Officer Stéphane Perrault shared the statistics during a hearing of the Senate national finance committee, noting the unusual spike in turnout during the 2015 election. "The turnout rate of 50.5% in 2015 remains an exception," Perrault wrote, without providing a specific reason for the decline in subsequent elections.Despite concerns raised by some lawmakers, Elections Canada denied allegations that prison wardens were obstructing the vote. "Elections Canada works with Correctional Service staff to administer the vote in institutions," Perrault said, dismissing claims that inmates were being prevented from casting ballots.Sen. Kim Pate (Ont.), a long-time advocate for prisoners' rights, expressed concerns at a September 17 hearing, suggesting that wardens might be interfering with the voting process. She referenced allegations of lockdowns and other methods that may have restricted prisoners' ability to vote. "I am sure you are aware of the allegations of a number of incidents where there have been lockdowns and other methods to prevent prisoners from voting," Pate said.However, Perrault reiterated that Elections Canada was "not aware of the alleged measures referred to by Senator Pate," reaffirming that the voting process for prisoners had not been compromised.Prisoners gained the right to vote following the landmark 2002 Supreme Court decision in Sauvé v. Canada, which struck down a section of the Elections Act that previously barred incarcerated individuals from voting. The court ruled that denying prisoners the vote was a violation of their rights and counterproductive to rehabilitation. "The negative effects of denying citizens the right to vote would greatly outweigh the tenuous benefits that might ensue," the court stated in its decision.Fergus O’Connor, the lawyer who successfully argued the case, emphasized the importance of maintaining prisoners' voting rights. "Just because you’re in jail doesn’t mean you are no longer a citizen," O'Connor said in a past interview. "Incarceration is already punishment. It’s still no fun to be in jail. But prison should be as 'normal' as possible."Despite the notable influence of the prison vote in a few tight races, including two Conservative MPs losing their seats by narrow margins in 2015, O’Connor argued that inmates generally vote similarly to the broader population."Prisoners in my experience tend to vote the way of the general population," O’Connor said, adding that their votes do not overwhelmingly favor one political party over another.The overall impact of prisoner voting on election outcomes remains unclear, as there has been no peer-reviewed research specifically addressing this issue.
