Secure E-balloting Will be Used for Early Voting in the Preston By-election
Secure E-balloting Will be Used for Early Voting in the Preston By-election
Media Release: July 11, 2023
Elections Nova Scotia – A by-election is underway in the electoral district of Preston. Election day will be Tuesday, August 8, 2023, but voters can cast their ballot before election day at the returning office, community poll, and remotely by write-in ballot.
To be eligible to vote in the Preston by-election, you must be 18 years of age or older on Tuesday, August 8, 2023, a Canadian citizen, have lived in Nova Scotia since January 7, 2023, and reside in the electoral district of Preston.
The Preston by-election will be the first opportunity for voters to cast their ballot using Elections Nova Scotia’s new e-balloting system. E-balloting will be used for early voting in the Preston by-election following the close of candidate nominations at 2 pm on Wednesday, July 19, 2023. Before the close of candidate nominations, the write-in ballot format will be used for early voting at the returning office.
The e-balloting system is safe and allows voters to select the candidate of their choice on a secure tablet. Once a vote is cast, the e-ballot system produces a paper voting receipt for the voter to place in the ballot box. E-balloting allows fast and secure counting of early votes when the polls close on election night. This means the results of the Preston by-election will be returned quickly and efficiently.
Traditional paper ballots will be used for voting on election day. E-balloting will only be offered during early voting after the close of candidate nominations prior to election day in the Preston by-election.
The Government of Nova Scotia made amendments to the Elections Actin 2021 to provide authority for e-balloting. Elections Nova Scotia has developed the secure e-balloting system and is confident in the integrity of this innovative voting method. The Preston by-election will be the first use of e-balloting in Canada.
E-balloting is not internet voting. Both are electronic forms of voting, but e-balloting takes place in-person at a voting location on a secure tablet while internet voting facilitates remote voting using the internet.
Elections Nova Scotia is a non-partisan and independent agency responsible for conducting provincial elections. For more information, please visit electionsnovascotia.ca or follow us on Facebook and Twitter @electionsns.
Media Contact:
Naomi Shelton
Director, Policy and Communications
Elections Nova Scotia
902-424-3275
902-223-4871
naomi.shelton@novascotia.ca