Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member of Parliament for Mont-Saint-Bruno—L'Acadie.
It is my honour to rise today to speak on Bill C-25, the strong and free elections act, specifically about the bill's timely and comprehensive amendments to address unduly long ballots. I want to echo what my colleagues have been saying in the House, specifically the government House leader and our colleagues from opposition. This was collaboration amongst parties. I have the privilege of sitting on the committee that will receive this bill and continue to work, in good faith, on the amendments that come forward. Hopefully in that same good faith, we will see this bill pass quickly to address the many concerns that we have heard from Canadians.
Canada's democracy is among the strongest and most stable in the world. At the heart of this vibrant democracy are free, fair and accessible elections. Accessible elections reflect a core Canadian value that all Canadians will be able to cast their ballot without facing undue challenges.
In recent years, however, the accessibility of federal elections has been challenged by the actions of those coordinated movements known for registering a large number of independent candidates who are not running to serve as members of Parliament. Rather, they are choosing this method as a means of protesting Canada's electoral system and the ways in which our electoral laws are made. Since 2019 this group has targeted three general elections and six by-elections, including the most recent by-election in Terrebonne.
During the 45th general election in 2025, the number of candidates included on the ballot in the electoral district of Carleton reached 91, most of whom received fewer than 10 votes. This resulted in a ballot that was close to one metre in length. In Terrebonne, some candidates on the ballot received zero votes. The August 2025 by-election in Battle River—Crowfoot, Alberta featured 214 candidates, 201 of whom were affiliated with the longest ballot movement and shared the same official agents.
In October 2025, the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, PROC, undertook a study that looked at the issue of long ballots. The committee presented its report to Parliament in March of this year, and all of its recommendations are contained in Bill C-25.
It is important to point out that the protest movement did not affect our election results, which shows just how strong, robust and secure our electoral system really is. However, the group's actions did make the administration of the election a lot more confusing and complicated. They also caused accessibility issues for voters and election workers, particularly those with disabilities.
In the elections preceding the 45th general election in 2025, the ballots in the ridings targeted by the group were much longer because of the large number of candidates. At the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, we heard that the long ballots posed major problems for many voters, particularly those with disabilities. For example, voters with dexterity and mobility issues indicated that it was very difficult for them to handle and mark their ballots, whereas blind voters were unable to use the new assistive voting technology.
Research conducted by Elections Canada shows that 71% of voters who had difficulty filling out their ballots attributed this to a candidate list that was too long or to difficulty locating a candidate on the list, while 13% mentioned that the ballot was too long to handle or difficult to fold. In addition to voters, election workers reported significant challenges associated with long ballots. The ballot boxes used to transport ballots are much heavier and harder to carry, vote counting becomes more complex, and reporting is often delayed.
The time has come to put an end to this confusion and the complication of the accessibility challenges created by the actions of the longest ballot committee. I also want to highlight that the main concern we heard from our witnesses on this study was around the fact that people want to see better processes when it comes to elections.
There are other ways to work through that system to make sure that we have more accessible elections for Canadians and that there are different ways of participating and doing our civic duty rather than obstructing and causing this issue that has affected voters who live with a handicap.
I am personally pleased that Bill C-25 would do exactly that, through a series of targeted amendments to the Canada Elections Act, the fundamental framework that governs all aspects of federal elections in Canada.
Firstly, as suggested by the Chief Electoral Officer, Bill C-25 would limit voters to signing only one candidate nomination paper per election, recognizing that, to date, candidates associated with unduly long ballots often obtain the required number of signatures by having the same person sign multiple nomination forms. Not only would this mitigate the issue of long ballots, but it would also reinforce the original intention behind the Canada Elections Act's signature requirement, which is to demonstrate sufficient local support for a specific individual's candidacy.
However, also aligned with the Chief Electoral Officer's expert recommendation, the nomination of candidates would not be refused if an elector signs more than one candidate nomination paper. This is because candidates who are not affiliated with a coordinated protest movement are unlikely to have knowledge of or control over whether an elector has already signed another candidate's nomination form.
For individuals who contravene the new signature requirements, the commissioner of Canada elections, the independent agent who is responsible for enforcing the Canada Elections Act, would have a number of tools at her disposal to encourage compliance with the act depending on the unique circumstances and contravention. This would include information letters, warning letters, and depending on the severity of the infraction, administrative monetary penalties.
Secondly, this bill would limit official agents who are responsible for managing campaign finances and reporting all financial activities to Elections Canada to working for one candidate per electoral district per election. This step would recognize the important and substantial role that official agents play and their responsibility toward the candidate they represent. To ensure compliance with this, it is already the case under the Canada Elections Act that individuals who serve as an official agent when ineligible to do so may face consequences, including warning letters or administrative monetary penalties, and up to more significant fines or even jail time.
Bill C-25 also includes a number of other measures that would protect the integrity of Elections Canada in addressing long ballots. For example, Bill C-25 includes measures that would ensure that the commissioner of Canada elections, who is responsible for enforcing our Canada Elections Act, could hold individuals to account who encourage or incite others to sign multiple nomination forms, and to prohibit false information in candidate nomination papers.
Taken together, these measures would help address long ballots, protect election administration, accessibility and integrity, and ensure that when voters head to the polls, they are presented with genuine lists of candidates who legitimately want to serve the interests of Canadians.
In closing, as I said earlier, the federal election process includes many measures to protect our electoral system and keep it strong, including measures governing the secrecy of the vote count, the security of the vote count and the sharing of the results. Although the long ballots did not affect the results of the election, they still created considerable challenges for candidates. Bill C-25, the strong and free elections act, will address those issues and strengthen the integrity of both the candidate nomination process and the electoral process as a whole.
Obviously, this is something we studied. We had many discussions, and witnesses spoke on it. I am glad to see we are finally putting forward a bill that would make sure that our elections and voters' integrity continue to be protected.
I look forward to taking questions from my hon. colleagues on this.