Trans voter may not cast ballot after Elections Canada mix-up

A handful of transgender people in the Ottawa-Gatineau region have received voter information cards with the wrong name and gender and at least one votersays it could influence the decision to cast a ballot in this month's federal election.

laine Gingras legally changed names and genders in 2014, before the last federal election.

But this year,twovoter information cards came: oneto a former address with thecorrect name, and oneto the correctaddress in the Outaouais with Gingras's previous name.

Five other local transgender voterstold Radio-Canada they also received incorrect cards.

Voter information is supposed to be updated automatically,although Elections Canadasays mistakes do happen and if they do,voters should make the change in person at their local Elections Canada offices or on voting day at a polling station.

For Gingras, having to once more gothrough the process of providing identification and documentsis distressing.

"It's embarrassing, because people judge you from head to toeand wonder why you do not have the right name," said Gingras in a French-language interview with Radio-Canada.

Now Gingrasis trying to decide whether to vote in this month'selection.

"Do I really want to put myself through this?"

A slap in the face

Getting a voting card with the wrong name is another example of the struggles transgender peopledeal with daily, said Sophia D'Aoust,president of the Ottawa-Gatineau transgender support group Gender Mosaic.

"For someone who is called 'he'instead of 'she'20 times a day, receiving a card with the wrong name is like getting slapped in the face," said D'Aoust.

D'Aoust said shewantsElections Canada workers to receive training on how to handle complaints from transgender peoplewho need to fix their cards.

Such mistakes are not only far from innocuous for transgender people they're also a bit bizarre, given the scope of modern information technology, saidMarie-Pier Boisvert, director-general for Conseil qubcois LGBT.

"How is it that, with today's computer systems, this isn'tsettled?" she asked.

More than 3 million changes per year

According to Elections Canada, the national register of electors contains the records of nearly 27 million Canadians and the information of about 14 per cent of them more than three million people changes each year.

The national register gathers data through sources such as licensing authorities, provincial and territorial registries, provincial and territorial lists of electorsand Revenue Canada.

However, some of those sources may provide erroneous or outdated informationor experience delays in sending along the correct information, said Elections Canada spokesperson Natasha Gauthier.

Any changes to first names and genders are entered manuallyto "ensure data integrity," Gauthier said.