ONTARIANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT COMMITTEE

VOTERS' GUIDE for People with Disabilities

April 15, 1999

This is an important election for people with disabilities. One and a half million Ontarians have disabilities. Until now, politicians have generally not taken the votes of people with disabilities into account. This Ontario election will be different. This is especially so if Ontarians with disabilities make sure that they get involved in this campaign and vote.

Here are some helpful tips on how people with disabilities can make sure they can fully participate in all aspects of the election campaign process, including, of course, voting. Please share this information with family and friends - make sure everyone's voice is heard in this election.

WHO CAN VOTE?

You must be:

• Over 18
• A Canadian Citizen
• An Ontario resident

WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO DO TO VOTE?

Make sure you are on the voter's list:

Once the election is called, you can call Elections Ontario at 1-800-677-8683 (TTY: 1-888-292-2312) to get the phone number and address of the Returning Officer for your riding. The Returning Officer can tell you if you are on the list of voters. If you are not already on the list, or their information about your name or address is wrong, someone from the Returning Officer's office can tell you what you need to do to get onto the list.

If you are not on the voters list:

You will have to apply to the Chief Returning Office for a Certificate to vote. This can be done any day up to and including the day of the election. In order to register to vote, you will need to show the Chief Returning Officer two pieces of identification. They must include your full name, address and signature. Although a driver's license is one of the suggested pieces of identification, other identification can be used.

If you cannot get to the Returning Office because of your disability or the office is not accessible, call the Chief Returning Officer and ask them to send an official to your house or to a more convenient location so that you can be added to the list.

HOW CAN I VOTE?

There are three different ways you can vote in a provincial election:

• POLLING STATION

  The location of the polling station will be posted once the election is called. The Election Act requires that polling stations be located in places that are as physically accessible to wheelchairs as possible. This may not guarantee that you will be able to enter the polling station. If you require any special accessibility features, such as ramps, nearby accessible parking, bright lights, etc. it is a good idea to check out the site of the polling station before voting day or ask someone to do it for you.

• ADVANCE POLL

  Advance polls are days you can vote before the day of the election itself. There will be advance polls on six days during the election campaign period. The hours will be from 10:00 am to 8:00 pm. The dates and locations of advance polls will be announced once the election is called. The advance polls are supposed to be in an accessible location. Again check out the site prior to the date of the advance poll to be sure. To find out where and when there will be advance polls, contact the Returning Officer in your riding.

• PROXY VOTING

  If you do not think you will be able to go to vote at a polling station during an advance poll or on election day you may apply in writing to the Returning Officer in your riding to have someone else go to the polling station and cast your vote for you. You must complete an application form and give it to the person that you want to vote for you. That person must then take it to the Returning Office anytime up to 8:00 pm the night before election day. They will be given a document called a Certificate to Vote by proxy. Then, on election day, that person can go to the polling station and cast your ballot for you. You tell them who you want to vote for. A person can only cast a proxy ballot for one other voter.

WHAT IF I CAN GET OUT TO VOTE BUT THE POLLING STATION LOCATION IS NOT ACCESSIBLE?

If you find that the polling station that you are supposed to vote in is not accessible to you, you may apply to transfer to vote in another polling station that is more accessible. This can be done anytime up to and including election day. If the people at the polling station do not know about this, or are not helpful, contact your Returning Officer in your riding immediately.

You may also want to call the Returning Officer and ask that the location of the polling station be changed to an accessible site. Feel free to express any complaints to the Returning Officer in your riding, and to the campaign offices of any or all of the candidates running for election in your riding.

WHAT IF I NEED ASSISTANCE VOTING?

If you are deaf you are permitted to have a sign language interpreter present at the polling station to assist you. However, if one is not available you may be refused a ballot until an interpreter becomes available. If you know that you will require an interpreter, you should contact the Returning Officer in your riding as soon as the election is called to request that an interpreter be provided on election day. Let them know what polling station you will be going to to vote.

If you are blind or have a vision impairment, or have a disability which makes it impossible for you to properly mark your ballot, you may have another person assist you with marking your ballot for you. You can bring a friend along to the polling station to do this, or you can ask one of the people working at the polling station to do this for you.

The person assisting you is required to take an oath that they will not tell anyone who you voted for. You also must take an oath that you need assistance to mark your ballot.

In some previous elections, some forms of adaptations for ballots have been made to assist persons who cannot read print due to a disability. It is not known whether this will be done in this election, and if so, what form those adaptations might take.

WHAT ELSE SHOULD I DO TO PREPARE FOR VOTING?

TRANSPORTATION: If you rely on paratransit or other forms of transportation that you have to arrange in advance, book your ride for voting day as soon as possible to ensure that you will be able to get to the polls. If you use the paratransit system in your community, call to book your ride for election day as soon as the election date is announced. If you cannot use the regular transit system and are not a user of the paratransit system, call the office of one of the candidates in your riding and ask them to assist you in arranging accessible transportation on election day.

INFORMATION ABOUT CANDIDATES

It is important that you have full access to campaign events sponsored by each of the candidates in your riding, as well as general election meetings hosted by community groups. If you have special needs you should let the riding office of each candidate know and ask that you be accommodated at meetings that you want to attend.

It is also important that you have access to the campaign literature that gives you information about what position each candidate takes on the issues. If you have a vision impairment or other disability that prevents you from reading conventional printed campaign literature, ask the candidate's campaign office for information in alternative formats e.g. Braille or large type.

For further information about the efforts of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee to achieve a barrier-free Ontario for all people with disabilities, visit our web site at www.odacommittee.net or contact us at:

Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee
Tel: (ODA Committee Voice Mail) (416) 480-7012
Fax: (416) 480-7014
TTY: Care of Susan Main (416) 964-0023 ext. 343

For more specific information about voting in the greater Toronto area, please contact Michelle Hurtubise or Marilyn Walsh at (Voice) (416) 486-8666 (Fax) (416) 486-8660.

ASK US IF YOU NEED THIS MATERIAL IN AN ALTERNATIVE FORMAT.
 

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