The Windsor Star from Windsor, Ontario, Canada • A6

TORONTO A major online voting issue that forced more than 50 communities in Ontario to extend municipal election voting hours prompted questions on Tuesday among candidates and experts about the integrity of the balloting process. One candidate forced to wait a full 24 hours longer to find out whether he would be mayor called the process disconcerting and questioned the wisdom of having no paper-ballot backup. In addition, Chris Peabody called on the provincial government to study in ternet balloting and to update election laws to reflect new realities. Instead of either celebrating a win or drowning a loss in a drink, Peabody and scores of other political hopefuls found themselves grappling with the online glitch. makes you really question whether worth putting all the time and effort into Peabody said of his run for mayor of Brockton, Ont.

might be one of the reasons so much cynicism and so many acclamations in municipal politics this year in In all, 51 municipalities using Denver, Dominion Voting Systems had problems. Some opted to extend voting by an hour or two but others like Brockton in midwestern Ontario pushed the deadline back a full 24 hours. In a statement late Monday, Dominion blamed an unnamed Toronto company for limiting incoming online voting traffic. Dominion said the issue was resolved in 90 minutes, but many voters still complained of problems. On Tuesday, the company had few other details.

priority is ensuring that our Ontario municipal election customers are able to provide their voters with uninterrupted service until the end of Dominion vice-president Kay Stimson said. One expert was skeptical about casting blame on a third-party subcontractor and said communities might never know for sure what really happened. As a rule, said Aleksander Essex, an assistant professor of software engineering at Western University, verifying the integrity of online votes is next to impossible. left to just trust the vendor and the clerk that they did a good job (but) why should you have to trust Essex said. not a strong foundation for a democratic institution to be built off of a multinational, completely global infrastructure that is basically being run by business concerns and is completely Essex said the province track and has little idea of going on when it comes to electronic voting.

Peabody, who said always been wary of online voting in light of hacking concerns and technical problems, wants the Municipal Elections Act updated. For example, the act bans candidates from helping people vote at polling stations. However, with e-voting, a polling station is front door if they have an Peabody noted. The Canadian Press Online election glitches raise issues about integrity of process ELLWOOD SHREVE CHATHAM Darrin Canniff will have to get new business cards to change his title from Chatham councillor to Chatham-Kent mayor. The 52-year-old won the race in convincing fashion Monday night, receiving 19,316 votes 56 per cent of the 34,722 votes cast.

Voters sent a clear message that they wanted change at the top with incumbent Randy Hope finishing a distant third with 4,722 votes, just shy of 14 per cent of the vote. Alysson Storey finished second with 9,255 votes, garnering nearly 27 per cent of the vote. Harold Atkinson, Robert Salvatore Powers and Allan Traylor finished well out of the running with 675, 351 and 170 votes respectively. euphoria right Canniff said as he built a commanding lead relatively early in the evening, crediting the hard work of his team. The new mayor will be working with nine new councillors, including three in Chatham Marjorie Crew, Karen Kirkwood-Whyte and Amy Finn along with Anthony Ceccacci and Mary Clare Latimer in South Kent, Melissa Harrigan in West Kent, Jamie McGrail in North Kent, John Wright in East Kent, and Aaron Hall in Wallaceburg.

Canniff was optimistic about the new group of councillors elected. have these great new coun cillors that are coming he said. all need to get together, work together. have great life experience. looking forward to all the new ideas that are going to be coming to the table.

We can take it to the next level with this Canniff has become well-known in the community for his charitable initiatives, beginning with founding the popular Festival of Giving, which has grown to raise in a night to support the Chatham-Kent Treatment Centre and local food banks. Hope, a former MPP in the Bob Rae NDP government from 199095, was first elected as mayor in 2006, defeating incumbent Diane Gagner. But many people remembered Hope pledging to only stay on for three terms. He indicated in early 2018 that he was leaning toward seeking a fourth term. During the campaign, Hope touted the reduction in municipal debt and the number of new businesses and jobs that have come to Chatham-Kent during the previous 12 years.

Despite winning three terms, Hope drew criticism for trips abroad, particularly to China, that had some residents questioning the return on investment. Canniff moves from council to top job in Chatham-Kent race TYLER KULA SARNIA After 30 years with Mike Bradley as mayor, voters decided they want at least four more. second-longest-serving mayor still in office handily won his tenth term as mayor Monday with 16,238 votes. The count was more than double that of his nearest competitor, 15-year Sarnia councillor Anne Marie Gillis, who had 7,569. Kip Cuthbert received 592, and Fred Ingham 397.

Voter turnout, it seems, was the highest at least since the late 1990s, amid multiple reports more than 47 per cent of electors participated. It was the first paperless election, with all voting via internet and telephone. Bradley shook off the fallout of a city hall investigation in 2016 that found he bullied and harassed staff members to win yet again. He campaigned on taking the city back from what called administrative overreach. Bradley had been limited to work-hours-access only at city hall after a workplace investigation report found his actions of bullying and harassment toward four senior staff members including current CAO Marg Misek-Evans violated the occupational health and safety act.

His office was also walled off, and he was forced to communicate with most staff members through an intermediary Gillis, his mayoral challenger. Multiple city councillors have said the only way to remove the restrictions is if Bradley completes sensitivity, governance and anger management training something city hall officials have said he has not done. Gillis, who challenged Bradley on his leadership and the workplace probe said she was pleased with her campaign. really proud of our team we certainly tried to engage younger voters so we really crafted our campaign that she said. The race was slightly closer than when Gillis took on Bradley for mayor in 2000, when Bradley got 15,537 votes against 5,635.

During his campaign, Bradley said he wants to focus on eliminating the debt, review the code of conduct, defend local health care and decrease the number of city staff through attrition. With files from Louis Pin Bradley shakes off scandal, cruises to 10th term as Sarnia mayor Darrin Canniff Mike Bradley CENTURY OF Maureen Lucas, left, Rotary Club of Windsor (1918) past-president, holds the ceremonial shovel in the Maryvale portion of the Centennial Legacy Tree Dedication Road Trip to mark 100 years of service in the community. Joining Lucas were other Rotarians and Maryvale sta NICK BRANCACCIO A6 WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2018 WINDSOR STAR OurStudioislocated at8CountyRoad42, Tecumseh 519-735-5515 ProfessionalInstallation BeautifulFlooring UltimateConvenience ExemplaryService www.windsor.floorcoveringsinternational.comwww.windsor.floorcoveringsinternational.com OwnerOwner Callorseeustoday! 3877DougallatCabana 519.972.9675 TecumsehHomeHardware 1613LesperanceRoad TecumsehON 519-735-3400 EssexHomeHardware 47WilsonAve. EssexON 519-776-4646 RedCanOpener Sale 3 77 Limit2 00814998 1063ErieStreetEast 519.254.6213 www.enzos.ca1063ErieStreetEast 519.254.6213 www.enzos.ca Cannotbecombinedwithanyotheroffers, discountsorgiftcertificates. ISCELEBRATING20YEARS cate ThankYouWindsor Withpurchaseof2beveragesand2Entrees.