How does Elections Canada keep your votes secure?

After a record number of Canadians voted in advance polls during this federal election, they want to know their ballots are secure and counted fairly.

Elections Canada said an estimated 7.3 million Canadians voted over the Easter long weekend, representing a 25 per cent increase over the 5.8 million who voted in advance polls in the federal election in September 2021.

With millions more gearing up to cast their votes on Monday, here's a breakdown of the process Elections Canada uses to ensure everything runs smoothly behind the scenes.

Verifying voters

Elections Canada maintains the National Register of Electors, a permanent database of eligible voters that it updates using more than 40 sources of information to ensure that only people who are entitled to vote are on the list of electors in each riding.

At the polling station, each voter must present ID and proof of address, and is then crossed off the list after voting.

Once the voter has marked their choice on the ballot, an electoral officer will examine its serial number to verify that the ballot is the same one that was handed to the voter. A "counterfoil" with a serial number is then torn and removed from the ballot, before the voter puts the ballot in the ballot box.

It is illegal to take pictures of a marked ballot, in order to prevent people from being intimidated or influenced to vote a certain way. 

Special ballots

Canadians who are out of the country, in a jail or institution, or request to vote before advance polls can do so through special ballots, with proof of ID.

They are given a special ballot voting kit, which includes the ballot, a plain inner envelope and a larger outer envelope.

The voter writes the name of their chosen candidate and puts the ballot in the inner envelope. They then put that into the outer envelope, on which they sign a declaration.

The voter can then mail that envelope to Elections Canada or drop it into a ballot box at their local Elections Canada office.

After checking that the elector's name and district code match those on the application form, Elections Canada removes the inner envelope containing the ballot, so it cannot be associated with the voter's identity.

Special ballots cast from outside the voter's riding can be counted up to 14 days in advance of election day.

Counting the ballots 

The rest of the votes, even from advance polls, are not counted until election night. Counting can start one hour before polls close, but the results will not be published until all polls close.

The ballots are counted by at least two paid election officials in front of people who do not work for Elections Canada — typically the candidates or their representatives — in a room with closed doors.

"This means that the counting of votes is open to scrutiny, ensuring that the process is followed as set out by law and can be easily audited," the Elections Canada website states.

No one is allowed to leave the room until the count is done, and no one else is allowed to enter.

The officials unfold each ballot and say the name marked out loud as they tally the votes on paper.

The workers total the number of electors who voted, as well as the number of spoiled and unused ballots, before sealing the ballots and delivering them to the returning officer, who is the official in charge of managing the election for that electoral district.

The returning officer records the vote counts in a computer program that securely sends the information to Elections Canada's main office.

"It's a very secure, closed system, and every part of it is covered in the [Canada Elections] Act," Elections Canada spokesperson James Hale told CBC News. "So there's nothing left to chance."

Where do advance ballots go until election day? 

At the end of each advance polling day, the deputy returning officer (DRO) seals each ballot box slot and signs the seal. The poll clerk and central poll supervisor, as well as any party or candidate representatives who are present, must also sign the seal, which prevents ballots from being added to or removed from the box. 

Additional seals are placed on two sides of each box. If they were to be removed and replaced, they would no longer match the information on the Seal Control Sheet, "which would result in an incident being detected," Elections Canada says.

Each box is then sealed in an "official transport bag." The DRO takes it home for the night, and returns it the next day to hold more ballots.

In the week between advance polls and election day, the ballot boxes are either kept in the custody of the DRO, or locked up at an Elections Canada office, until they are opened and counted on election night. 

Addressing irregularities 

Elections Canada reviews election data and materials after each election to address any potential irregularities, such as cases of double voting or voting by people who are not entitled to do so.

If anything unusual is detected, officials authorized by Canada's chief electoral officer can open "poll bags" with all relevant materials from the location where the unusual activity is suspected. They work in pairs "to provide additional control and oversight," according to the Elections Canada website.

If Elections Canada identifies a possible voting irregularity, it refers the case to the Commissioner of Canada Elections for an independent review.

Anyone who thinks they may have witnessed an election law being broken is also entitled to make a complaint to the Commissioner of Canada Elections, which reviews all complaints and has the power to investigate and take enforcement action. The commissioner's office publishes annual reports with statistics on the cases referred to it.