Chris Lowrey
PORTAGE DU FORT Oct.1, 2018
Residents of Portage du Fort had to travel to Bryson in order to cast their vote in the recent provincial election when they found out at the last minute that their municipality would not have a polling station.
A petition is being circulated in town by residents to convey their dissatisfaction with the change. The petition, which now has more than 130 signatures, was the brainchild of local business owner, Nicole Thompson.
Thompson, the returning officer for poll 18, said the change of the polling station’s location led to a sharp drop off in the number of voters.
“I can tell you that 28 of 180 registered voters on the list came to Bryson to vote,” she said via email.
During the last provincial election, Portage du Fort residents also had to vote in Bryson. Similar to this election, Thompson said residents were informed last minute of that change of venue as well.
She also said that just about every other election has a polling station in town.
She pointed to the fact that during last year’s municipal election, Portage du Fort saw a 77 per cent voter turnout, much higher than the 60 per cent average of the MRC Pontiac as a whole.
The 28 voters out of 180 who actually cast ballots represents a voter turnout of 15 per cent – a drop off of more than 60 per cent in less than a year.
Thompson said that with the lack of response from Elections Quebec, residents felt limited in their ability to voice their displeasure.
“The majority of voters told me they would not [vote],” Thompson said. “This was definitely the only way for them to protest.”
Thompson said that she contacted Elections Quebec when she saw that there would be no polling station in town.
“Nobody seemed to have an answer,” she said of the response she got from Elections Quebec.
Officials later decided to locate the polling station at the Lion’s Hall in Bryson.
“[I’m] not quite sure if it was because our municipal council didn’t get back to them about using the hall [or if] they just forgot about us,” Thompson said.
