NDP e-voting problems prompt concerns in HRM
Posted Mar 26, 2012 05:49:47 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Online voting problems at the federal NDP leadership convention are prompting concerns here in Halifax.
The Spanish company hired to oversee online voting for the New Democrats is the same company that won the contract to to handle online and telephone voting in HRM’s upcoming municipal election.
That has some councillors concerned about working with the Spanish company Scytl, which was awarded the contract over Dartmouth’s Intelivote in January.
Scytl’s bid for the contract was more than $300,000 lower than Intelivote’s, and some councillors now say they may get what they’ve paid for.
“That probably should have been a wakeup call to council that something might have been wrong here,” said Coun. Sue Uteck (Northwest Arm – South End).
Uteck says she wants city staffers to review the contract.
“Can we renegotiate this contract, because when you look at a small convention like that for the NDP versus an HRM-wide election, I just foresee major problems,” said Uteck.
Coun. Jim Smith (Albro Lake – Harbourview) says he will also ask staff to take another look at the contract with Scytl.
“We don’t want to throw money away on this,” Smith told News 95.7. “It all depends on whether we’re 100 per cent sure on whether they can do the job. Then certainly, we would move forward.”
Under the contract, the city clerk’s office will be doing dry runs with the Scytl to ensure the system meets all requirements, including security concerns.
Coun. David Hendsbee (Preston – Lawrencetown – Chezzetcook) said he’s not anticipating any problems, saying the magnitude of Halifax’s municipal election is different than that of the federal NDP leadership race.
“I think the two scenarios are quite different. The municipal election is a one-time ballot. There’s no repeat voting as there was in leadership race,” said Hendsbee. “Voting for mayor and councillors, I don’t think they have the same gravity as voting for the leader official opposition for the country.”
If the city wanted to make a change it would have to do so soon as several deadlines for planning the fall election are approaching.
The NDP’s new leader was expected to be named by the supper hour Saturday, but online voting problems extended the process late into the evening.
