The next time a provincial election rolls around, the voting process will feel slightly different as the government finalized changes to the Election Act on Friday.
Amendments were made to the Election Act in an effort to make the voting process more efficient and reduce the time British Columbians will have to spend at the polls.
Firstly, the new amendments will allow Elections BC to use machines — known as tabulators — to more quickly and accurately count paper ballots.
In addition to the vote-counting machines, election officials will be able to use an electronic voting book to check voter information, speeding up the process for people who vote in person. The Province says that this process will also improve safeguards by making it easier for officials to check who has cast a ballot.
Ballot printers will also be added to polling stations, helping reduce the need for write-in ballots. The printers will create custom ballots with the correct information for any British Columbian’s registered electoral district, allowing voters to cast their ballots anywhere in the province.
The government says that these amendments are the most significant changes to B.C.’s voting process in more than 25 years.
Elections BC has completed the necessary preparations to conduct an election under the new provisions.
More information on the changes can be found online here.
CHEK News
