Here's how Saskatchewan is modernizing for the 2023 provincial byelection

As voters headed to the polls this week to cast their ballot for three vacant seats in and around Regina, some people may have noticed some changes.

Michael Boda, chief electoral officer in Saskatchewan, said during the byelection, workers have been using electronic poll books.

“Election workers use laptop computers with software that allows them to do their work and it eliminates the need for workers to use … rulers and pencils and crossing off of names of voters,” he said during a technical briefing on Wednesday.

As well, Boda said the addition of vote counting equipment will eliminate the hours of hand counting, and will reduce the number of poll workers needed.

“This is not a voting machine, it’s very different from what you’re seeing south of the border,” Boda said. “These machines take a hand marked paper ballot and simply counts the ballot, with the ballot kept if a recount is needed.”

“The accuracy is much higher than a count by hand.”

To figure out the margin of error, Boda said teams will hand count ballots against the numbers in the machines to determine the accuracy of the machines.

He said shifting into election modernization has been a long journey in the province, noting the initiative began following the 2016 general election.

“It’s important to recognize that election systems are somewhat like a cruise ship, not a speedboat. Changes need to be introduced slowly,” he said.

He said the three byelections currently taking place are an important initial step for modernizing efforts moving forward.

“With the modernization initiatives and innovations, these byelections are really a microcosm of what next year’s general election could possibly look like,” he said.

“The chief electoral officer has the authority under the Election Act to allow alternate procedures in a byelection but not during a general election.”

Boda said on the provincial level, they have been testing the technologies for some time in different ways.

“The electronic poll books have been used during a byelection in Meewasin. The technology of vote counting equipment has been used for more than a decade on the municipal level here in Saskatchewan,” he said, noting the technology has also been used across Canada.

He said Manitoba will introduce the technology this fall, while British Columbia is set to introduce it in the fall of 2024, at the same time as Saskatchewan.

However, Boda said the legislators on the board of internal economy are the ones who make the decisions as to whether or not the technology would be adopted for that election, which is set for Oct. 28, 2024.

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The final day of voting for the three byelections takes place on Thursday, with polls open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The website will be updated as election results come in.

The Sask. Party nominees are Riaz Ahmad for Regina Coronation Park, Blaine McLeod for Lumsden-Morse, and Nevin Markwart for Regina Walsh Acres.

The NDP’s nominees are Noor Burki for Regina Coronation Park, Jared Clarke for Regina Walsh Acres, and Kaitlyn Stadnyk for Lumsden-Morse.

Regina Walsh Acres was left vacant after the passing of MLA Derek Meyers, Regina Coronation Park was left vacant with the resignation of Mark Docherty, and Lumsden-Morse was left vacant following Lyle Stewart’s resignation due to health concerns.