Voter turnout in Hamilton’s 2022 municipal election was 35.38 per cent. Photo Credit: Pexels.
City of Hamilton staff are working to improve the municipal electoral process in the city ahead of the 2026 election, but at least one recommendation from the city’s auditor general was met with concern from Councillors.
Auditor General Charles Brown recommended that the city “consider rationalizing staffing levels and evaluating the opportunities for savings and reduction of resources through consolidation of poll locations for the next election.”
In response, Councillor Tom Jackson (Ward 6 – East Mountain) said, “I would hope and pray that we’re not looking at reducing the number of polling locations – that we would maintain if not increase the number of them across each of the wards.”
Councillor Cameron Kroetsch (Ward 2 – Downtown Hamilton) also objected, saying, “In Ward 2 specifically, we have the highest number of senior disabilities in our community, we have the highest number of folks with disabilities in our community, we have the highest number of challenges when it comes to pedestrian accessibility and pedestrian safety.”
“I think making voting more accessible to people encourages them to vote,” he continued.
The voter turnout in Hamilton’s 2022 municipal election was 35.38 per cent, while the average turnout across Ontario at the city level was 36.3 per cent.
But the City of Hamilton’s Manager of Elections, Print and Mail Tammy Reeves explained that the municipality struggles to find enough staff to man the polls which is why the auditor general recommended consolidation.
She said that it is hard for the city to find upwards of 1,000 to 1,100 people for one day of employment as election staff.
Brown explained his recommendation further to Councillors, saying, “Resourcing at polling locations has been an ongoing challenge election to election so it’s not a recommendation necessarily to do that but to at least consider it.”
Brown added that he also recommended a review of the criteria that are used to select polling locations so as to improve the “amount of space and distance between them.”
Councillor Alex Wilson (Ward 13 – Dundas-Central Flamborough) said that if resourcing on election day is an issue, then the city should look at alternative methods of voting such as online voting and also work to expand advanced voting.
Councillor Kroetsch agreed, “We don’t have enough advanced polling days.”
One of the other recommendations from the auditor general was that if the city opts to consider online voting for the 2026 municipal election, then they should “ensure that the costs, benefits, and risks are thoroughly evaluated.”
City of Hamilton management responded to that recommendation noting that Council authorized online voting for the 2025 Ward 4 HWDSB Trustee By-election and that staff “will revise their risk analysis document and report back with recommendations on the use of online voting for the 2026 Municipal Election, utilizing data obtained through the By-Election.”
Management also added that the City Clerk’s Office has partnered with a Master’s level political science course at Brock University in which students will run a mock election during their fall term and utilize a vendor to test online voting.
Students will be providing policy recommendations based on a municipal scan, research, and the results of the mock election, with a particular focus on security, privacy, ballot/vote submission verifiability, and voter turnout.
City of Hamilton management will eventually provide a full report on online voting later in 2025.
The Elections Administration Audit itself was initiated by Mayor Andrea Horwath after the October 2022 municipal election that saw delays at polling stations and problems with the mail-in ballot system.
Brown made a total of 50 recommendations on how the city can improve processes for the 2026 election.
The recommendations, including City of Hamilton management response, can be viewed here.
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
