Elections Canada faces 31,000 complaints in robo-call probe

[Dogpatch]

Robocalls by Liberals also targeted Guelph

Frank Valeriote's campaign used negative automated calls
Liberal MP Frank Valeriote confirms his campaign used a negative robocall in the lead-up to last May's federal election. An audio recording of the call surfaced Friday.

By Laura Payton, CBC News
Posted: Mar 10, 2012 3:20 PM ET

An audio recording surfaced Friday to show the Conservative campaign in Guelph, Ont., wasn't the only one to use automated robocalls in the last federal election campaign: the Liberals also employed the technique.

Liberal MP Frank Valeriote is confirming his campaign used an auto-dialed phone message to tell voters in the riding that the Conservative candidate, Marty Burke, opposed abortion.

Valeriote said the call was recorded by a volunteer from his campaign who used a fake name because she feared retribution from anti-abortion activists.

The recording, provided by a Conservative supporter, features a woman who identifies herself as Laurie MacDonald, but doesn't say she's calling from Valeriote's campaign.

"The race in Guelph is very close. Vote strategically on Monday to protect our hard earned rights from the Conservatives and Marty’s extreme views," the woman says in the message.

A spokesman for Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the Valeriote campaign calls were illegal because they're supposed to identify which party made them.

Valeriote said the call was issue-based and not about suppressing votes. He added he spoke to Elections Canada about the call and the agency confirmed it complies with election law.

Elections Canada was not available over the weekend to confirm that claim.

Automated calls, also known as robocalls or direct voice drop, are a commonly used campaign tool because they're cheap and let candidates reach a large number of people.

The calls themselves are legal if they conform to election law. Elections Canada is currently investigating robocalls in Guelph that illegally claimed to be on behalf of Elections Canada and that tried to direct people to the wrong polling station, which is also against the law.

[Soulforger]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2 ... -date.html

Voter supression case to be heard in December

CBC News

Posted: Aug 15, 2012 2:16 PM ET

Last Updated: Aug 15, 2012 10:11 PM ET
Read 105 comments105


The legal challenge seeking to overturn last year's federal election result in seven ridings won by Conservatives will be heard in court in mid-December, the Council of Canadians said Wednesday.

The group is backing nine voters who say there is evidence of voter suppression and that the election result should be overturned in ridings where the result was close. They say a pattern of misleading calls, both live and automated robocalls, shows a co-ordinated effort to keep Canadians away from the polls on May 2, 2011.

The Council of Canadians said that a hearing of the evidence has been scheduled for Dec. 10 to 14.

However, the case will be in court before then, in September, because of ongoing arguments related to it.

The voters bringing the court challenge has asked for Elections Canada to provide details on complaints received from voters in the robocalls affair. Elections Canada says it received some 800 complaints from 200 federal ridings about misleading phone calls in the 2011 federal campaign. The agency has not provided the detailed information.

A lawyer for the Conservative party, Arthur Hamilton, says the demand for specific details would "interfere with the case timetable" and it is opposed by his clients.

The Federal Court has been asked to decide whether Elections Canada has to turn over the requested information. The decision is expected to be delivered on Sept. 18.

At that time the parties will also argue a motion from the lawyer acting for the seven Conservative MPs in the case that asks the challengers to put up $250,000 to cover the MPs' costs in case the challengers lose.

More in link...

[styky]

Elections Canada commissioner declines to hand over robocalls investigation data to Federal Court


By GLEN MCGREGOR AND STEPHEN MAHER, The Ottawa Citizen and Postmedia News August 21, 2012 4:05 PM

OTTAWA — Elections Canada has updated the number of complaints it received over misleading election phone calls but is refusing to provide the Federal Court with more details about its ongoing “robocalls” investigations.

By August 16, the agency had fielded 1,394 complaints alleging specific instances of misleading phone calls during the election from people in 234 different ridings, according to new data provided by the Commissioner of Canada Elections.

The total marks a sharp increase on the approximately 700 complaints that Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand cited when he spoke to parliamentary committee in March.

Read more: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Elect ... z24DNglt2I

[styky]

I'm highly skeptical of complains that are lodge after a prompting to remember a 60 second call by a recording over a year ago.



Court records say complaints doubled to 1,394 ‘specific occurrences’
by The Canadian Press on Tuesday, August 21, 2012 4:49pm -
OTTAWA — The number of complaints about fraudulent or misleading telephone calls in last year’s federal election has almost doubled, according to court documents filed by the Commissioner of Canada Elections.

By mid August, Elections Canada had received 1,394 complaints “alleging specific occurrences” in 234 of Canada’s 308 federal ridings, the lawyer for the elections watchdog says......................http://www2.macleans.ca/2012/08/21/cour ... currences/

[styky]

Liberal MP Frank Valeriote’s riding association fined $4,900 over robocall violation by CRTC
Stephen Maher and Glen McGregor, Postmedia News | Aug 24, 2012 12:50 PM ET | Last Updated: Aug 24, 2012 12:52 PM ET
More from Postmedia News
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission has fined Guelph, Ont., Liberal MP Frank Valeriote’s riding association for a robocall message that anonymously attacked his Conservative opponent’s position on abortion in the last election campaign.

Under a settlement agreement with Valeriote, the CRTC assessed a $4,900 fine for violations of the Unsolicited Telecommunications Rules.

The call failed to identify its originator and did not give a callback number.........................http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/08/24 ... valeriote/

[RedDog]

I suspect the "complaints" reflect a politically motivated mass multiple contact abuse several times greater than the work of one guy in Guelph.

[styky]

I suspect the "complaints" reflect a politically motivated mass multiple contact abuse several times greater than the work of one guy in Guelph.

I find it more than just a little amusing that with all the ranting and raving about conservative this that and the other thing with robocalls and the first fine is for a Liberal.

[styky]

New affidavits defend data showing robocalls affected some election results


By STEPHEN MAHER AND GLEN MCGREGOR, The Ottawa Citizen, Postmedia News August 24, 2012 2:01 PM
OTTAWA — The Council of Canadians has assembled detailed rebuttals of the Conservatives’ attack on polling data used to back claims that “robocalls” swung the results of last year’s election in a small number of ridings.

The left-leaning advocacy group is backing a series of court challenges brought by voters who claim live and pre-recorded calls changed the outcome in the seven ridings, all won by Conservatives.

Read more: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/affid ... z24UQXHLCQ