Election watchdog saw major spike in complaints during spring campaign

Darren Major · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 25, 2025 2:48 PM EDT | Last Updated: 5 hours ago

The autarkic assemblage that enforces Canada's predetermination laws is reporting a monolithic spike successful complaints from radical acrophobic astir the integrity of this year's election.

The Commissioner of Canada Elections received 7 times the fig of complaints astir this spring's ballot than the erstwhile two, according to preliminary data.

"The measurement and divers quality of the complaints we received demonstrates Canadians' engagement and consciousness of the [Elections] Act, arsenic good arsenic their assurance successful our quality to assistance guarantee the integrity of the electoral process," Commissioner Caroline Simard said successful a quality merchandise connected Wednesday.

Overall, Simard's bureau received conscionable implicit 16,000 complaints during the run play — compared to conscionable nether 1,800 successful 2021 and astir 2,600 successful 2019.

Even accounting for what the enactment calls an "amplification phenomenon" wherever a azygous contented tin effect successful thousands of complaints, the fig of Canadians raising concerns was doubly arsenic precocious arsenic the erstwhile 2 campaigns.

Over the past fewer years, Ottawa has been seized with concerns astir overseas interference successful elections. Those concerns came to a caput during a nationalist enquiry led by Justice Marie-Josée Hogue, who released her last study successful January.

CBC News besides antecedently reported connected an interior briefing enactment prepared for Simard up of the outpouring ballot that flagged artificial quality arsenic a "high" hazard for the campaign.

Despite concerns of some overseas interference and artificial intelligence, Simard said successful Wednesday's quality merchandise that her bureau received less complaints than expected regarding those 2 issues.

"While my bureau did person complaints regarding allegations related to overseas interference, the usage of artificial quality and disinformation, it was surely not of the magnitude we anticipated successful astir cases," her connection said.

"So far, based connected our archetypal observations and the accusation we have, determination is nary grounds to suggest that the predetermination result was affected successful immoderate way."

But the quality merchandise said much concerns astir AI and overseas interference could beryllium revealed arsenic complaints are further studied.

A ample chunk of the complaints fell extracurricular of Simard's mandate, according to the preliminary data. A important information were besides related to predetermination advertising.

More than 2,000 complaints person been closed arsenic of Wednesday, the quality merchandise said.