Allowing Canadian CITIZENS who have lived abroad for more than five years to vote in federal elections would be unfair to those who live in Canada, Ontario's top court ruled Monday.
In a split decision, the Court of Appeal overturned a ruling that had restored the right of more than one million long-term expats to vote.
If you disagree with this decision and believe that Canadian citizens living abroad deserve a voice in Canada with their vote please sign the petition and share with all!
Updates
Reached 500 supporters
August 17, 2015
August 16, 2015
I checked the count just now and we are barreling toward the half-thousand mark which is honestly wild since I started this in my kitchen while drinking cold coffee. Please take the link and throw it onto your social media feeds because we need to hit that milestone before the people in charge decide to ignore us again.
Reached 100 supporters
July 29, 2015
July 26, 2015
I noticed we are creeping up on that first hundred mark and honestly it feels pretty wild that so many of you care about this as much as I do since it is so easy to forget about us living halfway across the globe. Can everyone please just blast this link out to a couple of people right now because hitting that triple digit milestone would really help me feel like we have a shot at changing this rule.
247 Comments
An expatriate who WANTS to vote is more informed on the candidates and concerns than many people living here that don't bother to vote or be involved. With voter turn out so low why turn away Canadians who do want to vote.
I am Canadian. How DARE you tell me I am not? What's next, my social security I presume. My passport? I am livid. For the first time in my life I am ashamed to be Canadian. Because I married an American I lose my right to vote?
I may not live in Canada, but I am Canadian. I have a vested interest in what happens in Canada as I still have investments and bank accounts in Canada. My one and only passport is Canadian. Why should I have the same rights as a prisoner in my own country in regards to voting?
Having lived abroad for over 5 years but with project to come back i feel that i have a right to vote to make sure that my country is still my country when i get back. We need to make this terrible decision an electoral point!
I was born Canadain and Candian I remain—I have no other citizenship. The US, Japan, France, and pretty much every other advanced democracy treats citizenship and the vote as sacrosanct—and the Charter makes it clear that voting is a fundamental right every *every* Canadian citizen.
As a Canadian citizen who was born to expat parents and who has lived abroad for most of my life, I have never held the right to vote in any election. In my opinion, laws such as these distort the notion of citizenry to a residency based definition. In today's globalized world, opportunity is everywhere, so why do we "punish" those who decide to take advantage of this system? Laws such as these disenfranchise citizens and are symbolic, implying that those who leave are no longer welcome in our country, at least as far as decision making goes. In a key example, if the government were to decide to implement a global tax-regime, akin to the American one, those undeniably most affected would have next to no say in the decision process. This risk, symbol and disfranchisement must change.
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Allowing Canadian CITIZENS who have lived abroad for more than five years to vote in federal elections would be unfair to those who live in Canada, Ontario's top court ruled Monday.
In a split decision, the Court of Appeal overturned a ruling that had restored the right of more than one million long-term expats to vote.
If you disagree with this decision and believe that Canadian citizens living abroad deserve a voice in Canada with their vote please sign the petition and share with all!
Updates
Reached 500 supporters
August 17, 2015
August 16, 2015
I checked the count just now and we are barreling toward the half-thousand mark which is honestly wild since I started this in my kitchen while drinking cold coffee. Please take the link and throw it onto your social media feeds because we need to hit that milestone before the people in charge decide to ignore us again.
Reached 100 supporters
July 29, 2015
July 26, 2015
I noticed we are creeping up on that first hundred mark and honestly it feels pretty wild that so many of you care about this as much as I do since it is so easy to forget about us living halfway across the globe. Can everyone please just blast this link out to a couple of people right now because hitting that triple digit milestone would really help me feel like we have a shot at changing this rule.
247 Comments
I am a Canadian citizen living in USA (right by the border). I still follow CDN news and politics. I even own a home and pay property tax but can't vote because its not my primary residence. I feel like Nelly McClung - apparently I'm not a person anymore.
An expatriate who WANTS to vote is more informed on the candidates and concerns than many people living here that don't bother to vote or be involved. With voter turn out so low why turn away Canadians who do want to vote.
I am Canadian. How DARE you tell me I am not? What's next, my social security I presume. My passport? I am livid. For the first time in my life I am ashamed to be Canadian. Because I married an American I lose my right to vote?
I may not live in Canada, but I am Canadian. I have a vested interest in what happens in Canada as I still have investments and bank accounts in Canada. My one and only passport is Canadian. Why should I have the same rights as a prisoner in my own country in regards to voting?
Having lived abroad for over 5 years but with project to come back i feel that i have a right to vote to make sure that my country is still my country when i get back. We need to make this terrible decision an electoral point!
I was born Canadain and Candian I remain—I have no other citizenship. The US, Japan, France, and pretty much every other advanced democracy treats citizenship and the vote as sacrosanct—and the Charter makes it clear that voting is a fundamental right every *every* Canadian citizen.
As a Canadian citizen who was born to expat parents and who has lived abroad for most of my life, I have never held the right to vote in any election. In my opinion, laws such as these distort the notion of citizenry to a residency based definition. In today's globalized world, opportunity is everywhere, so why do we "punish" those who decide to take advantage of this system? Laws such as these disenfranchise citizens and are symbolic, implying that those who leave are no longer welcome in our country, at least as far as decision making goes. In a key example, if the government were to decide to implement a global tax-regime, akin to the American one, those undeniably most affected would have next to no say in the decision process. This risk, symbol and disfranchisement must change.
I support this petition.
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I am a Canadian citizen living in USA (right by the border). I still follow CDN news and politics. I even own a home and pay property tax but can't vote because its not my primary residence. I feel like Nelly McClung - apparently I'm not a person anymore.