To the Editor,
No paper ballots was a bad idea, but that is what the Township of Champlain opted to have for the municipal election this year. Our choices were computer or telephone, and it also required your personal information in the form of date of birth to go along with the sixteen-digit PIN we were all sent.
With a paper ballot you show someone your ID, it does not get recorded on some far away computer.
And what happens should the computers get hacked, where is the recount option?
A large proportion of seniors are not tech savvy or equipped and are forced to seek help.
Asking for help often feels like a loss of dignity to older adults because independence is deeply tied to their identity, self-worth, and lifelong self-sufficiency.
In effect, it is a basic disregard for the needs of an aging population.
And if you chose to seek help by going to the township office to vote, someone would have been looking over your shoulder guiding you through the process. Is this what is called a secret ballot?
Paper ballots are essential for election integrity.
North Glengarry, Cornwall and Ottawa all had paper ballots. Those are the three I know about.
Peter Pascale
Vankleek Hill
