For over 20 years, Pierre Poilievre dominated Ottawa’s electoral map. First elected in 2004, he held Nepean–Carleton until 2012, when redistribution formed Carleton—a new riding he continued to win with ease. But in April 2025, Poilievre lost Carleton to Liberal Bruce Fanjoy by roughly 4,500 votes, despite leading the Conservatives to their highest national vote count since 1988.
Poilievre blamed “an aggressive campaign by public sector unions” opposing his pledge to cut federal jobs. Yet another factor loomed large: a protest group flooded Carleton’s ballot with 91 candidates—85 of them their own. None earned more than 57 votes, but the effect was real: voter confusion and a delayed count in a razor-thin contest.
Targeting One Leader, Not the System
The group behind the tactic, The Longest Ballot Committee, claims to support electoral reform. But they targeted only Poilievre’s riding, sparing Liberal Leader Mark Carney in Nepean and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh in Burnaby Central. Their explanation? “Tight deadlines” and “poor weather”—a weak rationale that raises serious questions. This wasn’t widespread activism. It was a calculated move to derail the Conservative leader.
Sabotage Under the Guise of Reform
Overwhelming ballots to make a point isn’t reform—it’s confusion by design. Drowning out serious candidates with placeholder names turns voting into a gimmick. Canada’s voting system needs debate, not distortion.
Legal Rights, Real Damage
Canada’s Charter guarantees every citizen the right to vote. But when ballots become cluttered and unreadable, that right is compromised. This isn’t clever protest—it’s a violation of the voter’s ability to cast an informed, meaningful ballot.
Other Democracies Know Better
Countries like the U.S., Germany, and France limit frivolous candidacy through vetting and thresholds. Provinces in Canada already screen nominees for credibility. Yet federally, there’s nothing to stop a group from cluttering the ballot to make a political statement—and in Carleton, it showed. Ballots had to be pre-counted early; results spilled into the next day.
Reform Needs Clarity, Not Chaos
If the goal is proportional representation or ranked ballots, there are serious routes to pursue: citizens’ assemblies, parliamentary studies, and referenda. Confusing voters doesn’t build change—it erodes trust. Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan once warned that democracy falters when people can’t tell fact from fiction, saying, “Ensuring electoral integrity is not just about preventing fraud—it’s about protecting the legitimacy of democracy itself.”
Protest ballots like this charade in Alberta worsen that decline.
Time for Elections Canada to Step Up
Then came Chief Electoral Officer Stéphane Perrault’s response—a vague mention of possible penalties. It was the kind of soft, indecisive reaction that’s become a trademark of Ottawa bureaucracy over the past decade: lots of talk . . . and do nothing. The Longest Ballot Committee didn’t blink—they took Perrault’s chirps as a free pass and came back swinging.
We Either Fix It—or Fracture Trust
Democracy demands clarity. When ballots are used to sabotage rather than serve, the voter pays the price. Elections Canada must act now—because if protest gimmicks go unchecked, they will become precedent.
Stéphane Perrault would be wise to do some summer reading on the dangers to democracy. As Churchill warned, democracy is imperfect—but better than all the alternatives. Let’s not cheapen it with stunts. Let’s protect it with principle.
A petition has been submitted to the House of Commons calling for an end to the Longest Ballot. Add your name and show your support by clicking the link: https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Details…
Photo of Pierre Poilievre courtesy toronto.citynews.ca
