Seriously? That's disgusting.
Yep. The funding for in-home special ballots for mobility-disabled people was "not made available" in Alberta in 2019 for the provincial election (it was federally), so the only way I was able to vote was to get to the advance polling station. Fortunately it was in a mall, so no stairs, no worries about elevators. But my disabilities (I have several) mean that if I'm having a good day (ie. enough energy to actually get up, dressed, and go wherever and do what I went there to do), I can't wait.
I'd been on the phone with the Returning Officer, and he said, "If you can get here, you can vote."
So I turned up the next day... and they tried to deny me. I was a day or two early for the advance vote, and they said no, that there would be no voting allowed. So I told them (the Returning Officer and his deputy) that I was the person they'd spoken to the previous day, I had enough energy to come and vote, and btw if nobody was allowed to vote yet, why did they have a station set up already? (it was over in a corner)
They tried to find excuses. Maybe I was at the wrong place? What possible reason could they find to allow me to vote? They asked if I'd be away on voting day. I said no. I would be home but had no guarantee of feeling well enough, not to mention transportation was harder (easier to get to the mall than the school when using disabled transit). I was unable to send copies of ID through the mail due to not having access to a photocopier or fax, and in any case I don't consider it safe.
So they grouchily looked through the list of reasons they could write down as why they would let me vote. They discussed me as though I wasn't even there, and finally came up with the "Incapacitated Elector."
I've been a Deputy Returning Officer at federal and municipal level. That designation is intended for people who need help due to physical disability, or literacy issues. The idea is that a family member or friend will help them, or the DRO if requested. The helper must take an Oath of Friend of Incapacitated Elector to ensure they will mark the ballot as the voter directs.
The thing is, I didn't want or need help (my vision was crap due to cataracts, but I'd brought my own magnifying glass; this was between surgeries, so I could see with one eye but not the other). I just wanted to vote and they made it into an ordeal that didn't need to happen.
What they didn't know is that I'd been in contact with a CBC reporter who was doing an article on voting. I'd emailed to ask them to explain the options available to disabled voters because we ALWAYS get ignored.
I didn't mention this to these two jerks, but would have if necessary (they'd probably have tried to kick me out, insisting I was there as a "gotcha" kind of media-related stunt).
It would have been amusing to explain to either mall security or the cops that I was in the designated polling station for my riding, I had two of the required IDs, I met all the requirements for eligibility, yet these two wanted to make an issue because they didn't like uppity disabled people insisting on the same rights as everyone else.
Pretty straight forward though I do wonder about some of the people in the class.
Unfortunately, it’s sounding a lot like a foregone conclusion this time around.
