Quinte West says yes to online voting

By Greg Murphy

QUINTE WEST – Voters in Quinte West will be able to cast their ballot online in the 2014 municipal election.

Monday night at Quinte West council, a motion was passed to introduce a new online platform for voting.

It will cost the city $30,000 on top of the $50,100 it costs to run and staff the traditional paper-ballot polling stations. To offset the increase in cost, Kevin Heath, the city’s new clerk, suggested that some existing polling stations be eliminated.

The new online platform accommodates voters living in a digital age, Heath said.

“I think it’s good for Quinte, just like any service that you provide to the electorate. It’s making it user-friendly and accessible to accommodate the voters within our community. That’s what it’s all about, to accommodate the voters,” he

said.

Heath said he expects the new online platform to increase voter turnout.