Most voters line up at their local polling station, either on Election Day or at an advance poll, but seniors are also exercising their right to vote from their rooms or in a common area of their facility.
This is a pattern that may become more common among voters because of the aging population and because it makes the process easier for seniors.
In Quebec, the 65+ age group will represent 2.7 million people by 2066, increasing the proportion of seniors from 20 per cent to 27 per cent, according to the Quebec Institute of Statistics.
According to the latest Statistics Canada census, the population aged 85 and over is the fastest growing group, with a 12 per cent increase over 2016. This means that the proportion of seniors among the electorate is bound to grow.
This year at the advance polls, 1,120 polling stations were set up by Élection Québec in private seniors' residences (RPAs) and long-term care centers (CHSLDs).
Diane Girard, who has been living at the CHSLD Armand-Lavergne in Montreal for about six years, is one of the seniors for whom it is important to continue voting. She was the first in line at her residence to write her choice on the ballot and place it in the box.
"Even though they are seniors, they have the right to live like any other person. It's the same for a sick person, they have the right to have a normal life like everyone else," says the 74-year-old woman who is very involved in her residents' committee.
Girard said she voted for the first time at the age of 21, in the 1970 provincial election. The Quebec Liberal Party, then led by Robert Bourassa, formed a majority government. Bourassa became the youngest premier in Quebec's history at the age of 36.
"I have always voted because it is necessary. My father used to say at home that it's important to vote to say that someone is coming into power," said Girard.
The septuagenarian says that about a week before voting day, residents were sent a paper asking if they wanted to vote in advance in a room at the CHSLD. Staff then compiled a list of people who intended to vote in order to coordinate the process.
Girard said that everything went smoothly at the advance polls in her residence last Monday.
"I was happy to go and vote (...) It was simple; they took us person by person. We waited in the passage and one person at a time went in," said Girard
ELECTORAL WEIGHT
Although residents do not vote at the formal polling station in their district, the rules are the same. Among other things, residents must present valid identification to election officials.
Residents who are unable to vote on their own, for example, because of physical limitations, may be accompanied by an attendant. This person can be a staff member or family member, but he or she must only guide the resident and cannot advise him or her.
Girard gives the example of her neighbour, who is paralyzed on one side of her body. It is difficult for her to get around, so a staff member escorted her. She told him who she was voting for so he could write it on the ballot, and then he took her back to her room.
For now, the electoral weight of seniors voting this way is small. In 2014, some 67,700 seniors voted in RPAs or CHSLDs, representing 1.58 per cent of the vote. In 2018, 71,719 voted in their living environment, representing 1.75 per cent of the total voters who exercised their right to vote.
If a person is unable to travel to the common area of their residence, they can ask Elections Québec to vote from their room or apartment. As of September 21, close to 1,500 applications to vote at the room or apartment were accepted, and 3,718 applications to vote at home.
Élection Québec qualifies the data by indicating that residents of RPAs and CHSLDs can make 'spontaneous applications' to vote in their room or apartment if they are unable to move to the polling station. The actual number of in-room or in-apartment votes is, therefore, higher than the current registration numbers.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Sept. 29, 2022.
