Canada’s election to choose a new government has begun but new rules will restrict the right of ex-pats to vote. Is that fair? William Affleck-Asch-Lowe moved to the US 22 years ago, but the Canadian expatriate says he never lost touch with his roots. The University of Washington student keeps on top of news from home and is regularly in touch with Canadian friends online. Affleck-Asch-Lowe grew up in British Columbia and went on to serve in the Canadian army for seven years. When he finishes his PhD programme, he plans to come home and teach engineering. “Once a Canadian, always a Canadian,” he told the BBC. And yet, living outside his country has cost William Affleck-Asch-Lowe his right to vote.
“It’s really puzzling. I’m angry,” he says. “It’s part of the contract, right? I worked in Canada since I was 13 years old and I paid high taxes like everyone else.”
Affleck-Asch-Lowe is one of 1.4 million Canadians living abroad who lost the right to vote last week.
The Ontario Court of Appeals sided with the Conservative government in a ruling that bars Canadian citizens living outside Canada for over five years from voting in federal elections.
Full Article: Is it fair to ban expats from voting? – BBC News.