| Overview.... The Register of Electors was updated through a door-to-door Confirmation Process in the period from August 26 to September 11, 2000 under the authority of Section 11(2)(c) of the Election Act. The activity was conducted in order to provide an updated List of Electors to the registered political parties in the fourth year following the 1997 General Election, in accordance with Section 16(1)(b) of the Election Act. Lists of Electors were made available in both paper and electronic format.
Elector information collected during the November 1996 general enumeration formed the basis of the permanent Register of Electors. The Register is an electronic database containing elector information, which is continuously updated and used to prepare Lists of Electors, when required. Prior to the Confirmation Process, the Register of Electors was updated through direct elector request, and through information provided by Alberta Vital Statistics, which facilitated the deletion of deceased electors from the Register.
Additional sources of electronic information will be evaluated in the future for possible use in updating elector data.
Mapping Activities.... Elector information was collected based on the boundaries described in the Electoral Divisions Act. Although the electoral division boundaries were unchanged since the 1997 General Election, revisions were made to the polling subdivision boundaries by provincial Returning Officers to accommodate changes in population and communities of interest. A mapping review took place from October to November 1998, and final adjustments were made in July 2000, just prior to the commencement of the Confirmation Process.
Conduct of the Process.... For the first time, Lists of Electors were prepared using information that had been collected for a previous electoral event. Confirmation Officials went door-to-door to confirm that elector information contained in the Register was accurate. Additions, deletions and revisions were recorded at the same time. This streamlined process reduced the amount of information that many electors were required to provide. It also reduced the information that had to be collected, data entered, and verified following the Confirmation Process. This approach allowed for increased timeliness of the project and decreased the likelihood of error. It also provided a quantifiable standard to judge the progress of Confirmation Officials. Additional effort was directed to areas in which reduced elector populations were noted.
The goal in the Confirmation Process was to make contact with electors in 95% of the residences across the province. This goal was met and, in some electoral divisions, exceeded. Confirmation Officials visited each residence at least three times, if necessary. Electors who were not contacted were left a “We Missed You” card asking them to contact the Confirmation Official for inclusion in the Register, and on subsequent Lists of Electors.
Electors who provided information were left a “Thank You” card which advised them of the purpose of the data collection, including the possibility that their information could be shared with municipal and federal electoral agencies for electoral purposes. The cards also provided the Returning Officer’s name and telephone number to provide electors with the opportunity to ask questions or voice concerns.
Some electors voiced the opinion that names collected during the November 1996 general enumeration should have remained on subsequent Lists of Electors. However, it was decided that electors who did not confirm their information during the Confirmation Process would have their names deleted from the Register of Electors and subsequent Lists. This policy was indicated on the “We Missed You” cards left at residences where electors were not contacted.
The decision proved to be a sound one, based on final results of the data collection. It was discovered that information for only one in three electors was confirmed without any revision being necessary. Including the names of the ninety thousand electors that could not be contacted, instead of deleting them, would have resulted in approximately sixty thousand incorrect entries in the Register of Electors, based on the outcome experienced.
Challenges.... It is always a challenge to raise, train and manage a workforce of close to five thousand people. This challenge was ably addressed by the Returning Officers using standardized training prepared by Elections Alberta.
Many electors are very conscious of personal security, so Confirmation Officials’ identification was designed to be easily visible by a resident elector looking through a window. Unique identification was assigned to each Confirmation Official to allow for follow-up where necessary.
An increasing number of housing developments, especially apartments, restricts access to anyone other than residents. The Election Act, at Section 26, provides legislated access for entry by Confirmation Officials. Even so, gaining access is sometimes difficult, especially if non-resident building managers are not available.
Even in residences with ready access, it can be difficult to contact electors. The hours that people are available at home are often very limited. This made it difficult for some Confirmation Officials to successfully contact electors at the approximate two hundred residences to which they were assigned.
These problems are sometimes compounded in rural areas, where the significant distance between residences requires an additional time commitment on the part of Confirmation Officials. Poor weather and road conditions contributed to make this a difficult task in some rural areas.
While the concept of collecting elector data door-to-door has some inherent difficulties, direct elector contact is still a very effective method to collect timely, accurate information. It is also an extremely equitable method of List of Elector development, since each residence is visited and no elector groups are overlooked.
Partnerships with Municipalities.... In June 1999, the Chief Electoral Officer contacted all city municipalities in the province to explore the possibility of collaborating to collect elector data. Many municipalities collect information similar to that required for List of Elector preparation when civic census data is collected.
Two municipalities collected elector information for consolidation into the Register. Data was collected by census workers in April 2000 in the City of Red Deer, and in May 2000 in the section of the Municipal District of Wood Buffalo that formerly encompassed the City of Fort McMurray. The elector information was passed to provincial Returning Officers for data entry in both municipalities.
Residents of both municipalities were informed of the purpose of the data collection, including the sharing arrangement, in accordance with the intent of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
Partnership with Elections Canada.... Updated elector data was shared with Elections Canada, in accordance with Section 11(7) of the Election Act. An agreement was concluded in October 2000, which allows Elections Alberta to share Register of Electors data with Elections Canada for electoral purposes. In accordance with the contract, $750,000 was received from the federal electoral agency and deposited to the General Revenue Fund of Alberta.
Revisions obtained during the November 2000 federal general election were not integrated into the Provincial Lists of Electors. Although a sharing agreement was in place, elector data contained in the National Register of Electors could not be incorporated into the provincial Register due to legislative differences regarding residency requirements. There is a six-month residency requirement in the provincial legislation which is not reflected in the federal legislation. Therefore, some electors would appear on the Federal Lists of Electors who are not eligible for inclusion on Provincial Lists of Electors.
The possibility of receiving updated elector data from the National Register of Electors, managed by Elections Canada, will be explored in the future to facilitate electronic updating of Alberta’s Register.
Timeline.... A Confirmation of elector information took place in Edmonton-Highlands from March 8 to March 20, 2000. Elector information was updated to prepare a List of Electors for a possible by-election following the February 2, 2000 resignation of the sitting Member.
Elector information was collected by census workers, in conjunction with census data, in the electoral divisions of Red Deer-North and Red Deer-South in April 2000.
Elector information was collected by census workers, in conjunction with census data, in the electoral division of Fort McMurray in May 2000.
A Confirmation of elector information took place in Lacombe-Stettler from May 27 to June 10, 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the process and resources in a rural area.
Returning Officers were appointed by Order in Council to conduct the Confirmation Process. Training sessions were held in the first half of August 2000 to prepare them for their responsibilities in managing the data collection and data entry process.
The Confirmation Process commenced on August 26, 2000 and, in thirty-four electoral divisions, concluded on September 11. In twenty-nine electoral divisions, the Confirmation Process continued until September 18 to allow Confirmation Officials one extra weekend to contact electors. This was necessary due to staffing issues and other circumstances beyond the control of the Returning Officers.
Returning Officers in the following fifteen electoral divisions extended the data collection period after consultation with the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer. Extensions were granted where the data collection was not sufficiently thorough to meet the required standards.
|
Electoral Division |
Number of Polling Subdivisions in
which Extensions were Granted |
Date of Data
Collection Completion |
|
Athabasca-Wabasca |
2 |
September 27 |
|
Lesser Slave Lake |
9 |
September 26 |
|
Calgary-Bow |
3 |
September 19 |
|
Calgary-Buffalo |
4 |
September 24 |
|
Calgary-East |
4 |
September 22 |
|
Calgary-McCall |
1 |
September 22 |
|
Calgary-Mountain View |
2 |
September 22 |
|
Edmonton-Castle Downs |
1 |
September 22 |
|
Edmonton-Centre |
4 |
September 24 |
|
Edmonton-Gold Bar |
7 |
September 22 |
|
Edmonton-Strathcona |
23 |
September 25 |
|
Banff-Cochrane |
2 |
September 25 |
|
Drumheller-Chinook |
2 |
September 19 |
|
Grande Prairie-Smoky |
6 |
September 22 |
|
Stony Plain |
3 |
September 22 |
Points of Interest.... Confirmation Officials conducted their door-to-door activities singly, rather than with partners, unless it was decided that a second Confirmation Official was needed for reasons of personal security. The Office of the Chief Electoral Officer provided specific instruction for those Confirmation Officials who worked alone and there were no reports of difficulties relating to this employment arrangement.
Over 630,000 electors indicated that their address and personal information held in the Register was correct and could be confirmed without any changes. In effect, only one-third of overall Register data was still correct after the four years between the previous enumeration and the 2000 Confirmation Process.
Over 400,000 electors remained at the same address but indicated that changes were needed to their personal information. Confirmation Officials recorded changes to names, dates of birth, telephone numbers, and genders.
Over 434,000 electors were deleted from the address at which they were recorded in the Register.
Over 776,000 electors were added to the Lists of Electors or were recorded at a new address. They included electors who had turned eighteen, who had attained the citizenship or residency requirements, and those who had been missed at the 1996 enumeration. Electors at over 182,000 new residences provided information to Confirmation Officials.
Lists of Electors for the province grew by 9.74% from November 1996 to August 2000. That exceeds the overall population growth of 7.21% for that period, indicating that the quality of information continues to improve.
It is necessary to obtain a limited amount of personal information to facilitate the identification of electors in order to revise the Register electronically. This information is provided by electors on an optional basis. Following the conclusion of the Confirmation Period, 80% of electors had provided dates of birth and 93% had provided gender information. It is important to note that this information is used internally for administrative purposes only, and does not appear on Lists of Electors. Appropriate safeguards have been established to ensure that private information is kept strictly confidential.
Telephone numbers, which are also provided on an optional basis, were provided by 74% of electors. Telephone numbers appear on the Lists of Electors, so electors were notified of this use and asked to provide only telephone numbers that are publicly listed in telephone directories.
A breakdown, by electoral division, illustrating optional information currently contained in the Register is shown on Table 1.
Advertising.... Advertisements were placed in newspapers of general circulation to inform electors of the Confirmation Process. Weekly advertisements included information on voter eligibility, electoral division boundaries, timelines for data collection, and the purpose of the data collection. The advertisements included a telephone number for electors to contact with questions or concerns. Toll-free access was available during the Confirmation Process to assist electors outside of the Edmonton calling area.
Financial Analysis.... The breakdown of costs for the 2000 Confirmation Process will appear in the Financial Addendum to this Report.
Table 1: Optional Information Contained in the Register
|
Electoral Division |
Electors (May 2001) |
Dates of Birth
Received |
Genders
Received |
Telephone Numbers
Received |
|
1 |
Athabasca-Wabasca |
12,598 |
9,125 |
72.43% |
12,473 |
99.01% |
9,591 |
76.13% |
|
2 |
Lesser Slave Lake |
14,200 |
11,148 |
78.51% |
12,666 |
89.20% |
8,221 |
57.89% |
|
3 |
Calgary-Bow |
23,045 |
14,702 |
63.80% |
20,245 |
87.85% |
14,558 |
63.17% |
|
4 |
Calgary-Buffalo |
24,500 |
15,418 |
62.93% |
21,919 |
89.47% |
13,057 |
53.29% |
|
5 |
Calgary-Cross |
21,708 |
13,539 |
62.37% |
18,740 |
86.33% |
14,118 |
65.04% |
|
6 |
Calgary-Currie |
22,809 |
15,482 |
67.88% |
19,556 |
85.75% |
15,694 |
68.81% |
|
7 |
Calgary-East |
20,476 |
12,932 |
63.16% |
19,741 |
96.41% |
14,105 |
68.89% |
|
8 |
Calgary-Egmont |
26,419 |
22,664 |
85.79% |
25,623 |
96.99% |
22,219 |
84.10% |
|
9 |
Calgary-Elbow |
24,693 |
15,311 |
62.01% |
22,646 |
91.71% |
15,164 |
61.41% |
|
10 |
Calgary-Fish Creek |
22,201 |
17,819 |
80.26% |
21,005 |
94.61% |
19,149 |
86.25% |
|
11 |
Calgary-Foothills |
33,736 |
25,814 |
76.52% |
31,499 |
93.37% |
25,559 |
75.76% |
|
12 |
Calgary-Fort |
22,813 |
17,167 |
75.25% |
21,056 |
92.30% |
18,226 |
79.89% |
|
13 |
Calgary-Glenmore |
22,934 |
18,067 |
78.78% |
21,917 |
95.57% |
17,871 |
77.92% |
|
14 |
Calgary-Lougheed |
22,018 |
16,533 |
75.09% |
21,371 |
97.06% |
17,405 |
79.05% |
|
15 |
Calgary-McCall |
23,918 |
14,777 |
61.78% |
20,436 |
85.44% |
17,135 |
71.64% |
|
16 |
Calgary-Montrose |
21,255 |
16,206 |
76.25% |
19,769 |
93.01% |
17,240 |
81.11% |
|
17 |
Calgary-Mountain View |
22,950 |
15,629 |
68.10% |
21,401 |
93.25% |
14,932 |
65.06% |
|
18 |
Calgary-North Hill |
22,359 |
16,278 |
72.80% |
20,279 |
90.70% |
16,620 |
74.33% |
|
19 |
Calgary-North West |
38,382 |
31,884 |
83.07% |
35,960 |
93.69% |
32,692 |
85.18% |
|
20 |
Calgary-Nose Creek |
33,526 |
23,906 |
71.31% |
30,212 |
90.12% |
24,959 |
74.45% |
|
21 |
Calgary-Shaw |
49,380 |
43,482 |
88.06% |
48,528 |
98.27% |
43,551 |
88.20% |
|
22 |
Calgary-Varsity |
23,190 |
14,750 |
63.61% |
19,391 |
83.62% |
16,580 |
71.50% |
|
23 |
Calgary-West |
31,935 |
22,960 |
71.90% |
28,441 |
89.06% |
23,618 |
73.96% |
|
24 |
Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview |
21,291 |
16,507 |
77.53% |
19,941 |
93.66% |
14,305 |
67.19% |
|
25 |
Edmonton-Calder |
23,476 |
18,273 |
77.84% |
21,281 |
90.65% |
17,099 |
72.84% |
|
26 |
Edmonton-Castle Downs |
24,526 |
20,268 |
82.64% |
24,040 |
98.02% |
21,197 |
86.43% |
|
27 |
Edmonton-Centre |
22,055 |
16,536 |
74.98% |
19,731 |
89.46% |
14,174 |
64.27% |
|
28 |
Edmonton-Ellerslie |
19,173 |
15,765 |
82.23% |
17,831 |
93.00% |
16,048 |
83.70% |
|
29 |
Edmonton-Glengarry |
21,637 |
17,444 |
80.62% |
20,297 |
93.81% |
16,788 |
77.59% |
|
30 |
Edmonton-Glenora |
21,026 |
16,540 |
78.66% |
19,766 |
94.01% |
15,479 |
73.62% |
|
31 |
Edmonton-Gold Bar |
23,266 |
19,475 |
83.71% |
21,362 |
91.82% |
18,744 |
80.56% |
|
32 |
Edmonton-Highlands |
21,111 |
14,934 |
70.74% |
17,689 |
83.79% |
13,616 |
64.50% |
|
33 |
Edmonton-Manning |
25,921 |
19,507 |
75.26% |
23,532 |
90.78% |
19,693 |
75.97% |
|
34 |
Edmonton-McClung |
24,284 |
18,758 |
77.24% |
15,573 |
64.13% |
16,568 |
68.23% |
|
35 |
Edmonton-Meadowlark |
22,404 |
17,014 |
75.94% |
20,577 |
91.85% |
16,873 |
75.31% |
|
36 |
Edmonton-Mill Creek |
26,097 |
17,759 |
68.05% |
22,399 |
85.83% |
17,463 |
66.92% |
|
37 |
Edmonton-Mill Woods |
18,506 |
14,666 |
79.25% |
17,310 |
93.54% |
14,640 |
79.11% |
|
38 |
Edmonton-Norwood |
19,287 |
14,658 |
76.00% |
17,778 |
92.18% |
12,655 |
65.61% |
|
39 |
Edmonton-Riverview |
23,069 |
16,419 |
71.17% |
20,254 |
87.80% |
14,865 |
64.44% |
|
40 |
Edmonton-Rutherford |
22,534 |
18,194 |
80.74% |
20,728 |
91.99% |
17,665 |
78.39% |
|
41 |
Edmonton-Strathcona |
24,037 |
15,164 |
63.09% |
18,781 |
78.13% |
13,843 |
57.59% |
|
42 |
Edmonton-Whitemud |
30,270 |
25,764 |
85.11% |
29,262 |
96.67% |
25,454 |
84.09% |
|
43 |
Airdrie-Rocky View |
29,734 |
21,148 |
71.12% |
24,892 |
83.72% |
22,298 |
74.99% |
|
44 |
Banff-Cochrane |
26,654 |
20,329 |
76.27% |
24,097 |
90.41% |
19,610 |
73.57% |
|
45 |
Barrhead-Westlock |
16,613 |
14,730 |
88.67% |
15,578 |
93.77% |
14,886 |
89.60% |
|
46 |
Bonnyville-Cold Lake |
16,621 |
14,617 |
87.94% |
16,091 |
96.81% |
14,331 |
86.22% |
|
47 |
Cardston-Taber-Warner |
18,371 |
15,887 |
86.48% |
17,581 |
95.70% |
15,856 |
86.31% |
|
48 |
Clover Bar-Fort Saskatchewan |
25,389 |
21,935 |
86.40% |
24,721 |
97.37% |
21,904 |
86.27% |
|
49 |
Cypress-Medicine Hat |
19,688 |
17,463 |
88.70% |
19,197 |
97.51% |
17,857 |
90.70% |
|
50 |
Drayton Valley-Calmar |
18,346 |
15,012 |
81.83% |
16,651 |
90.76% |
15,245 |
83.10% |
|
51 |
Drumheller-Chinook |
15,877 |
14,109 |
88.86% |
14,799 |
93.21% |
13,719 |
86.41% |
|
52 |
Dunvegan |
15,832 |
12,172 |
76.88% |
14,014 |
88.52% |
12,942 |
81.75% |
|
53 |
Fort McMurray |
23,612 |
19,937 |
84.44% |
23,549 |
99.73% |
20,653 |
87.47% |
|
54 |
Grande Prairie-Smoky |
20,948 |
15,461 |
73.81% |
18,303 |
87.37% |
15,080 |
71.99% |
|
55 |
Grande Prairie-Wapiti |
19,489 |
16,406 |
84.18% |
18,583 |
95.35% |
17,481 |
89.70% |
|
56 |
Highwood |
29,372 |
24,285 |
82.68% |
27,850 |
94.82% |
25,473 |
86.73% |
|
57 |
Innisfail-Sylvan Lake |
23,799 |
18,965 |
79.69% |
21,340 |
89.67% |
21,289 |
89.45% |
|
58 |
Lac La Biche-St. Paul |
15,508 |
11,863 |
76.50% |
13,546 |
87.35% |
13,513 |
87.14% |
|
59 |
Lacombe-Stettler |
20,816 |
16,404 |
78.80% |
17,913 |
86.05% |
18,023 |
86.58% |
|
60 |
Leduc |
24,194 |
20,083 |
83.01% |
23,062 |
95.32% |
20,307 |
83.93% |
|
61 |
Lethbridge-East |
23,683 |
20,282 |
85.64% |
23,178 |
97.87% |
20,332 |
85.85% |
|
62 |
Lethbridge-West |
24,505 |
19,804 |
80.82% |
23,214 |
94.73% |
20,621 |
84.15% |
|
63 |
Little Bow |
18,573 |
14,878 |
80.11% |
17,071 |
91.91% |
15,710 |
84.59% |
|
64 |
Livingstone-Macleod |
24,240 |
13,533 |
55.83% |
15,561 |
64.20% |
12,635 |
52.12% |
|
65 |
Medicine Hat |
25,043 |
20,381 |
81.38% |
23,680 |
94.56% |
19,782 |
78.99% |
|
66 |
Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills |
21,231 |
17,348 |
81.71% |
20,824 |
98.08% |
17,985 |
84.71% |
|
67 |
Peace River |
16,036 |
12,291 |
76.65% |
14,089 |
87.86% |
12,656 |
78.92% |
|
68 |
Ponoka-Rimbey |
16,050 |
14,051 |
87.55% |
15,549 |
96.88% |
13,699 |
85.35% |
|
69 |
Red Deer-North |
20,763 |
16,465 |
79.30% |
19,520 |
94.01% |
17,118 |
82.44% |
|
70 |
Red Deer-South |
24,739 |
19,793 |
80.01% |
22,791 |
92.13% |
20,697 |
83.66% |
|
71 |
Redwater |
21,438 |
19,100 |
89.09% |
20,796 |
97.01% |
18,623 |
86.87% |
|
72 |
Rocky Mountain House |
19,962 |
16,800 |
84.16% |
18,355 |
91.95% |
17,509 |
87.71% |
|
73 |
St. Albert |
28,394 |
24,054 |
84.72% |
27,466 |
96.73% |
23,746 |
83.63% |
|
74 |
Sherwood Park |
31,532 |
27,229 |
86.35% |
30,151 |
95.62% |
26,382 |
83.67% |
|
75 |
Spruce Grove-Sturgeon-St. Albert |
23,631 |
19,372 |
81.98% |
22,496 |
95.20% |
19,315 |
81.74% |
|
76 |
Stony Plain |
23,482 |
18,409 |
78.40% |
21,394 |
91.11% |
18,538 |
78.95% |
|
77 |
Strathmore-Brooks |
24,110 |
20,483 |
84.96% |
23,209 |
96.26% |
20,458 |
84.85% |
|
78 |
Vegreville-Viking |
19,102 |
17,743 |
92.89% |
18,592 |
97.33% |
17,722 |
92.78% |
|
79 |
Vermilion-Lloydminster |
19,669 |
17,208 |
87.49% |
19,069 |
96.95% |
17,205 |
87.47% |
|
80 |
Wainwright |
19,178 |
16,869 |
87.96% |
17,953 |
93.61% |
16,755 |
87.37% |
|
81 |
West Yellowhead |
18,832 |
14,062 |
74.67% |
16,135 |
85.68% |
14,184 |
75.32% |
|
82 |
Wetaskiwin-Camrose |
22,550 |
19,882 |
88.17% |
21,569 |
95.65% |
20,094 |
89.11% |
|
83 |
Whitecourt-Ste. Anne |
20,285 |
16,408 |
80.89% |
18,083 |
89.14% |
15,559 |
76.70% |
|
|
Totals |
1,902,906 |
1,486,489 |
78.12% |
1,745,518 |
91.73% |
1,487,225 |
78.16% |
Financial Addendum
The financial addendum is based on data compiled as of August 31, 2001. Experience has shown that bills for election expenses continue to be presented several months after the service has been provided. Where these expenses are known or can be estimated, the data has been included in the figures contained in this addendum.
Please click here to view or download the Financial Addendum to the Report of the Chief Electoral Officer 2000 Provincial Confirmation Process and Monday, March 12, 2001Provincial General Election Twenty-fifth Legislative Assembly in PDF format.
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