E-Balloting Begins in the Preston By-election
E-Balloting Begins in the Preston By-election
Media Release: July 20, 2023
Elections Nova Scotia – Voters in Preston will cast the first e-Ballots today in Canada. Elections Nova Scotia developed the safe e-Balloting system to facilitate in-person electronic voting at a voting location.
Candidate nominations for the Preston by-election closed yesterday, July 19. Prior to the close of nominations, early voting in Preston was done by paper ballot. As of the close of polls at 6 pm yesterday, Wednesday, July 19, 174 early votes were cast by paper ballot at the returning office in Preston.
As of today, July 20th, voters in Preston who choose to cast their ballot before election day at the returning office or community poll will use e-Ballot 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.
e-Balloting will only be used for early voting prior to election day. Traditional paper ballots will be used on election day in Preston, Tuesday, August 8, 2023.
The Government of Nova Scotia made amendments to the Elections Act in 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.
Voters in Preston that have questions about the by-election can call the returning office at 1-888-503-5835.
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