Longest Ballot Committee
| File:Longest Ballot Committee logo.png | |
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| Formation | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Purpose | To protest against the first-past-the-post voting system and advocate electoral reform in Canada |
| Location |
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| Affiliations | Rhinoceros Party |
The Longest Ballot Committee is a Canadian activist movement known for flooding ballots with a large number of independent candidates in protest of the first-past-the-post (FPTP) voting system in the country.[1] The movement argues there is a conflict of interest when politicians are in charge of election rules, and calls for election law to be decided by a permanent, independent, and non-partisan body,[2] such as a citizens' assembly.[3] It is affiliated with the satirical Rhinoceros Party.[4]
History
[edit | edit source]The first attempt for a long ballot was in the 2019 Canadian federal election, when the Rhinoceros Party attempted to set a Guinness World Record for the longest ballot paper in history in Conservative leader Andrew Scheer's riding of Regina—Qu'Appelle.[5] Ultimately, only two candidates affiliated with the party ended up on the ballot.[6]
The movement began garnering national attention after participating in the 2022 Mississauga—Lakeshore federal by-election, the 2023 Winnipeg South Centre federal by-election,[7] and the 2024 Toronto—St. Paul's federal by-election.[8] The committee's actions have prompted amendments to election laws to accommodate a greater number of names on the ballots,[9] and generated significant controversy.[10]
In the June 2024 Toronto—St. Paul's federal by-election, it took hours for Elections Canada workers to count all the ballots. While polls closed at 8:30 p.m. ET, the final results were not known until about 4:30 a.m. The agency said it was bogged down because there were dozens of candidates on the unwieldy, nearly metre-long ballot—some of whom were proportional representation activists running as a protest to the country's first-past-the-post voting system.[8]
In the 2025 federal election, the Longest Ballot Committee targeted the Carleton riding in the Ottawa area, where Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre was running.[11] The committee's spokesperson Tomas Szuchewycz declared their efforts at highlighting electoral reform during the election a success, amid criticisms of their method.[12]
A poll conducted in July 2025 with a sample size of 1,500 found that 43% of Canadians believed the method to be an inappropriate form of protest, while 30% felt it was appropriate. 47% support legislation to stop the Longest Ballot Committee, while 34% opposed. In both cases, Conservatives were more against the protest, while the Liberals and NDP were more supportive of it.[13]
On July 28, 2025, on account of the registration of 214 candidates in the 2025 Battle River—Crowfoot federal by-election in which Poilievre was running, Elections Canada decided to use a special ballot similar to a mail-in ballot instead of the standard ballot, with a full list of candidates provided at polling stations.[14][15]
Elections in which the Longest Ballot Committee participated
[edit | edit source]| Election | Riding | Candidates[a] | Incumbent | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 federal election | Saint Boniface—Saint Vital | 21[16] | Liberal | Liberal hold | ||
| 2022 federal by-election | Mississauga—Lakeshore | 40[17] | Liberal | Liberal hold | ||
| 2023 federal by-election | Winnipeg South Centre | 48 | Liberal | Liberal hold | ||
| 2023 Ontario by-election | Kitchener Centre | 18[18] | New Democratic | Green gain | ||
| 2024 federal by-election | Toronto—St. Paul's | 84[19] | Liberal | Conservative gain | ||
| 2024 federal by-election | LaSalle—Émard—Verdun | 91[20] | Liberal | Bloc Québécois gain | ||
| 2025 federal election | Carleton | 91[21][22] | Conservative | Liberal gain | ||
| 2025 federal by-election | Battle River—Crowfoot | 214[15] | Conservative | Conservative hold |
Elections in which the Longest Ballot Committee planned to participate
[edit | edit source]- 2024 Cloverdale—Langley City federal by-election[23]
- 2025 Canadian federal election, University—Rosedale, riding of Chrystia Freeland[21]
- 2025 Canadian federal election, Nepean, riding of Mark Carney[22]
Gallery
[edit | edit source]-
Commemorative pin given to candidates in the 2022 Mississauga—Lakeshore and 2023 Winnipeg South Centre by-elections
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Ballot for the 2024 Toronto—St. Paul's by-election
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Ballot for the 2025 Canadian federal election (Carleton)
See also
[edit | edit source]Notes
[edit | edit source]- ^ Total number of candidates on the ballot, including candidates who are not affiliated with the Longest Ballot Committee.
References
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