Parliamentary Notice

Notice of Election

A Provincial Election will be held to choose representatives for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario on Wednesday, October 10, 2007.

Qualified Electors should take note of the following information:

Additions to the List of Electors Qualified electors whose names are not on the List of Electors may be added to the list by making a statutory declaration and providing proof of identity and proof of residence before 8 p.m. on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at their electoral district’s Returning Office or during voting hours at an Advance Poll in their electoral district or during voting hours at their voting location on Polling Day.

Official Nomination of Candidates closes Tuesday, September 18, 2007 at 2 p.m. in the Returning Office.

Advance Polls will be held at locations chosen for ease of access from Tuesday, September 25 to Thursday, October 4 (Sundays included) from noon until 8 p.m. and in the Electoral District Returning Office from Saturday, September 22 to Thursday, October 4, (Sundays included) from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m.

A Referendum on electoral reform is being held in conjunction with the 2007 general election. Each elector will be asked to consider the following question:

Which electoral system should Ontario use to elect members to the provincial legislature?

The existing electoral system (First-Past-the-Post)

The alternative electoral system proposed by the Citizens’ Assembly (Mixed Member Proporational)

Election and Referendum Day – October 10, 2007.
Voting hours from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m.

Dated this 11th day of September, 2007

John L. Hollins
Chief Electoral Officer
(140-G505)

Guidelines — Permanent Register Of Electors Information

These Guidelines are intended to help recipients of information from the Permanent Register of Electors for Ontario or the Lists of Electors that are prepared from the Register, to follow the provisions of section 17.4 of the Election Act, R.S.O 1990, c. E.6, as amended, relating to restrictions on the use and distribution of that information.

For the authoritative provisions, reference should be made to the statute.

1.0 Principles:

The principles underlying the prohibitions and restrictions against the dissemination of information obtained from the Permanent Register of Electors and the Lists of Electors prepared from the Permanent Register of Electors is that the information is personal information. Such information is generally not disseminated without first obtaining the consent of the person whom it concerns. Fundamental to the democratic process, however, is the identification of every elector. It is also essential to the democratic process for registered political parties to be aware of who the electors are so that they are able to present to them their political platform and thereby place the electorate in a position to make an informed choice when voting.

Section 17.4 of the Election Act requires that any information obtained by anyone from the Permanent Register of Electors or the Lists of Electors prepared from the Permanent Register of Electors must be used for electoral purposes only. The section also prohibits the use of any such information for commercial purposes.

2.0 Overview

The limitation placed upon the dissemination of personal information respecting electors is therefore an attempt to achieve a balance between the protection of privacy and the need to facilitate the electoral process which is fundamentally essential to the democratic process.

Any person who receives information from the Permanent Register of Electors or the Lists of Electors must, before he or she discloses the information to any other person, obtain the written acknowledgment in the form prescribed by the Chief Electoral Officer that the other person will be bound by the specific provisions of section 17.4. The acknowledgement also provides that the other person must also obtain a similar written acknowledgment before information is further disclosed to anyone else.

Section 17.4 of the Election Act applies irrespective of how the information is obtained and whether it is in electronic form or in printed form.

Where the information is received in electronic form, the section prohibits reproduction, storage or transmitting of the information electronically. Any person who receives the information from a party or member must complete the written acknowledgement under section 17.4 before he or she can reproduce, store or transmit the information.

The prohibition against electronic reproduction, storage or transmission does not apply to:

  • a registered party or a member of the Legislative Assembly receiving the information in accordance with section 17.3 of the Act; or,
  • a person who obtains confirmation of their personal information in accordance with section 17.1.1 of the Act.

3.0 Procedures — Copy of, or extract from, the Permanent Register of Electors for Ontario

    1. Chief Electoral Officer

      1. Every registered party and member of the Assembly will be notified by the Chief Electoral Officer when updating of the Permanent Register of Electors for Ontario is complete. The notification will include a form to be returned to the Chief Electoral Officer to request a copy of the Register or part of the Register. The request form will set out the restrictions on use and disclosure of the information, identify the person designated to receive the information (the recipient) on behalf of the registered party or member, and provide a form of undertaking to be signed by that person, signifying acceptance of the restrictions of the Act.
      2. On receipt of the completed request form from a registered party or a member of the Assembly, the copy or extract from the Permanent Register of Electors for Ontario will be produced by the Chief Electoral Officer on a Cd-Rom including a statement about the general restrictions on use of the information.
      3. The Chief Electoral Officer will provide the information to the person designated by the registered party or member, with a reminder of the restrictions and instructions relating to the security features of the information release.
      4. Where the Chief Electoral Officer receives a written report alleging a contravention of section 17.4 of the Act and the Chief Electoral Officer is of opinion that the allegation has merit, the Chief Electoral Officer may take such steps as he or she considers necessary to pursue appropriate legal remedies against the person alleged to have contravened the section.

    2. Recipient of information from the Permanent Register of Electors for Ontario (person designated under 3.1.1)

      1. The recipient is responsible for ensuring that the registered party or member that he or she represents adheres to the requirements of section 17.4
      2. Where the recipient has reason to believe that there has been a contravention of section 17.4 of the Act, the recipient must forthwith provide the Chief Electoral Officer with a full and complete written report of the alleged contravention.
      3. Before allowing access to the copy of the Register or information contained in the Register, the recipient must obtain a written acknowledgement from every person who will have access, that he or she understands and is bound by the provisions of section 17.4. This applies to employees and any other authorized person. The prescribed form of acknowledgement (Fo102) will be included with the delivery of the information from the Chief Electoral Officer.
      4. The recipient is responsible for ensuring that any person who has access to the electronic file containing information from the Register is aware that the information is not to be reproduced, stored or transmitted electronically for any purpose.
      5. The recipient is responsible for ensuring that, within five days of receiving an updated copy of or extract from the Permanent Register of Electors from the Chief Electoral Officer, every printed obsolete copy of the Permanent Register of Electors in his or her possession is shredded, and within ten days of receiving the updated copy all obsolete electronic copies of the Permanent Register of Electors in his or her possession are returned to the Chief Electoral Officer.

    3. Registered parties and independent candidates and independent members of the Assembly

      1. Every registered party, independent candidate and independent member of the Assembly is required to develop and implement a policy that ensures candidates, members of the Assembly, staff and agents, as appropriate, comply with section 17.4 and these guidelines.
      2. The policy must be disclosed to the Chief Electoral Officer at his or her request and may be published by the Chief Electoral Officer.

4.0 Procedures after a Writ of Election has been issued — Copy of, or extract from, the Lists of Electors prepared from the Permanent Register of Electors for Ontario

    1. Chief Electoral Officer

      1. When the Writ for an election or by-election is issued, the Chief Electoral Officer will prepare the Lists of Electors from the Permanent Register of Electors and provide a copy to the Returning Officer as required by section 19 of the Election Act.

    2. Returning Officer

      1. Upon receipt of the copy of the Lists of Electors prepared from the Permanent Register of Electors for Ontario and delivered according to section 19 of the Election Act, the Returning Officer is required to arrange for copies of the Lists to be made and distributed according to subsection 19(3)
      2. The Returning Officer must ensure that election workers who have access to the Lists or information from the Lists, are aware of and comply with the provisions of section 17.4 of the Act. A written acknowledgement (Form Fo101) must be completed before workers are granted access to the information.

    3. The person who receives a copy of, or information from, the List of Electors

      1. The person who receives a copy of, or information from, the Lists of Electors must not use the information for any purpose other than electoral purposes, nor for any commercial purpose.
      2. The person who receives the information must advise every other person who will become aware of information from the Lists of Electors of the statutory prohibitions and restrictions respecting the use of such information.
      3. The person who receives the Lists of Electors or information therefrom has a responsibility to ensure that every person supervised by him or her who becomes aware of information from the Lists of Electors complies with the statutory prohibitions and restrictions respecting the use of such information.
      4. Before allowing access to the copy of the Lists of Electors or information contained in the Lists, a written acknowledgement must be obtained from every person who will have access, that he or she understands and is bound by the provisions of section 17.4. This applies to employees and any other person. A form of acknowledgement (Fo101) will be included with the delivery of the information from the Returning Officer.
      5. Where a person who has received information has reason to believe that there has been a contravention of section 17.4 of the Act, he or she must provide the Chief Electoral Officer with a full and complete written report of the alleged contravention as soon as possible after he or she becomes aware of the possible contravention.

(140-G506E)