Don’t like your voting options? Fuck ‘em all

On Wednesday, Quebec Premier Jean Charest caught no one by surprise when he called a provincial election for Sept. 4. Most voters have likely already made up their minds as to how they’ll be voting, including those who don’t plan on casting a vote at all.


Is voter apathy rampant in Quebec? This graffiti would suggest so.
Photo by Tracey Lindeman

On Wednesday, Quebec Premier Jean Charest caught no one by surprise when he called a provincial election for Sept. 4. Most voters have likely already made up their minds as to how they’ll be voting, including those who don’t plan on casting a vote at all.

Of course, staying at home demonstrates exactly the sort of apathy and complacency our moribund political parties thrive on, so here’s another way to make your voice heard, to have your vote count — but not toward any party.

That is, spoiling your ballot.

Here’s how it works: go vote as you normally would, but instead of filling in the desired circle, write a message outside of the circles. It could range from a phrase as innocuous as “I reject this ballot” to something more inflammatory, or even a doodle or personal signature, as suggested to me by the Directeur général des élections du Québec employee I spoke with.

You then place the ballot in the box, and voilà — you’ll be officially counted as having voted, but in the rejected column (note: during the last election, the ballots were mostly black, so don’t plan on drawing anything too elaborate). Unfortunately, though, your rejected ballot will go into the same pile as the ballots from people simply too dumb to fill them out properly.

But perhaps you’ve considered more dramatic means of rejecting your ballot, like tearing it into tiny pieces with which you might, say, make it rain. According to Article 554 of the Quebec Election Act, knowingly destroying a ballot can net you a fine ranging from $5,000 to $20,000, so don’t.

The Elections Quebec rep I spoke with also astutely pointed out that if you did rip up your ballot in a blaze of glory, only the people working the voting station would know, and they wouldn’t care.

So if you’re unimpressed with the rhetoric of the candidates in your riding, consider legally spoiling your ballot and sending the message that no one was worthy of your vote. ■

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