Elections Ontario is taking a giant leap into the 21st century by introducing electronic voting machines for the first time in the June election.
Voters’ paper lists will also be replaced, introducing an electronic version called e-Poll Book.
The technology will not only make things quicker for voters on voting day, but it will also make counting ballots easier since they’re recorded electronically, saving Elections staff the tedious task of counting by hand.
“We’re hoping this will be much more efficient for the voter,” said Cara Des Granges. “Getting results should be faster and the technology is proven to be more reliable than tabulating votes by hand.”
When voters show up at their designated polling station on June 7, a machine will scan their voter registration card. Voters will then receive their ballot from Elections Canada staff. They’ll fill it out and present it back to on-site staff to be tabulated by a machine.