By Josh LaVoie
After last year’s Students’ Union General Election, some students lost faith in the system. There were numerous appeals, and more than once the voting system had trouble starting on election days. In an attempt to restore the faith of voters and prevent a relapse of previous issues the SU has been busily working on a solution for the By-Election.
“It’s not possible to have a catastrophic failure,” explained Chief Returning Officer Tom O’Neill. “The system has a constant backup.”
With the online voting system starting on time and without incident Tue., Oct. 19 it would appear that the SU has finally got it right.
“It was a big relief when the first vote came through,” said O’Neill “The system was running the way it did when it was tested.”
Much of the newfound election success may be attributed to a complete overhaul of the system. The SU has recently transitioned from Sorex to the CanVote election software.
“CanVote was clearly the best candidate,” O’Neill indicated. “They have a perfect record.”
The new system is still accessed via the Infonet and sports a simplistic new interface. When students log into CanVote they will be presented with only one question at a time which is intended to reduce both voter confusion and stress on the software.
The process of online voting also seems to have the support of many of the candidates.
“The online system is sweet,” stated Op-Fi Commissioner candidate Nick Vuckovic. “I have a lot of faith in it.”
The Student’s Union By-Election takes place from Tue., Oct. 19 until Thu., Oct. 21 and is available on the Infonet and at voting stations in MacEwan Student Centre and Science Theatres.