We work with Elections Canada. In the 1920s, one of the things Edwin Baker did, as the founder of CNIB, was change the election law to allow a veteran to go into a polling booth and vote with the aid of someone. Obviously a secret ballot is the foundation of democracy. We changed that in 1920, because before that, if you were blind you couldn't vote.
We're now in 2008 and we need to change it back so it becomes possible to vote independently. We're working with Elections Canada, and we'd love to have the support of Veterans Affairs and you folks, to make it possible. We think we have everything in place for the actual day, and I can go into details later if you like.
Candidates meetings remain an issue--knowing where they are, being able to read candidates' materials, candidates having the financial capacity to produce things in an alternate format, that type of access, just knowing where the meeting is--all those sorts of little details. I have to tell you that the blind and visually impaired community is the most engaged political community you could ever hope to meet. They are on the bit about all kinds of things.
I will share something we did in the last federal election. We advised everyone who wanted to talk to all of the candidates in their particular ridings--no matter which party, because we're non-partisan, and Bernard developed the phone numbers--to phone the candidates' offices and say, “When you're going door-to-door on my street, come and talk to me because I want to talk to you.” We were able to get you into the living rooms of blind folks to talk to them. It was really a good thing.
They're engaged and want to vote, so your question is very apt. I'm sorry, I could take all day on that one.