voting in Canadian elections

[CalGreenCard]

How do people feel, ethically, about the idea of voting in Canadian elections if one is a green card holder and intending US citizen?

I do intend to become a US citizen when eligible because, as a long term US resident, I do not feel comfortable paying US taxes without representation. As a green card holder, I can donate to US political campaigns and have already exercised my economic vote by donating to one of the presidential campaigns.

However, I do not intend to give up Canadian citizenship. Expatriate Canadian citizens are ordinarily allowed to vote in Canadian elections. However, there is a requirement that one state an intention to eventually return to Canada as a resident. That is what I'm uncomfortable with, because it is hard to see such an intention, even in the far distant future, as being consistent with an intention to become a US citizen.

I'm wondering whether other green card holders who wish to become US citizens vote in Canadian elections and, if so, how they reconcile this apparent contradiction ethically?

The matter has some urgency for me as there is presently a byelection in progress--scheduled for March 17--in the riding of my last Canadian address. I previously registered and voted using that address in a general election, but that was before I got my green card.

Any thoughts?

[Reba]

Legally you cannot vote in Canadian elections if you a legal permanent resident of another country anyhow.

If you were living temporarily in the US and had an actual return date to Canada, then you could vote. As you intend to stay in the US, and you are a card carrying permanent resident, you can't vote. Ethics or not, the government has made that decision for you.

Voter eligibility criteria
To vote, you must be a Canadian citizen and be 18 years of age or older on polling day.

You may register to vote by special ballot using the form in this guide provided:

you resided in Canada at any time before applying for registration;
you have resided outside Canada for less than five consecutive years since your last return to Canada (some exceptions apply); and you intend to resume residence in Canada.

http://www.elections.ca/home.asp

I have a green card, but I have NO intention of applying for citizenshipl. Yet I still do not vote in Canadian elections because I do not know if I will ever be able to return permanently. I hope I do, but I have no idea for sure.

[CalGreenCard]

Legally you cannot vote in Canadian elections if you a legal permanent resident of another country anyhow...

Thank you for your reply.

The Charter of Rights and Freedoms in the Constitution guarantees the right to vote to all Canadian citizens, though:

"Every citizen of Canada has the right to vote in an election of members of the House of Commons or of a legislative assembly and to be qualified for membership therein."

The restrictions on expatriate Canadians voting imposed on the Elections Canada forms do not seem to be consistent with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Prisoners in Canada have successfully used the above clause to assert their right to vote. Even Paul Bernardo can vote.

The ethical question that arises in my mind is whether a Canadian citizen who does not expect to return to Canada, but who forsees a remote possibility that might occur--eg illness in the family, an unexpected career opportunity--that would cause their return to Canada--can honestly and ethically assert an intention to return to Canada and thereby defend their constitutional right to vote.

The possibility that a prisoner might be released, however remote it might be in some cases, was cited by the Supreme Court of Canada in justifying granting the right to vote to prisoners. Surely that possibility is always going to be higher for an expatriate Canadian, even a dual citizen--and must therefore justify the right to vote.

Did Michael Ignatieff vote during his rather lengthy absence from Canada?

Of course it could be argued that a naturalized US citizen, in taking the oath of US citizenship, has voluntarily renounced the right to vote in Canada. But until that oath is actually taken--as long as it remains merely an intention for the future--what is the basis for denying the vote?

[CalGreenCard]

I have a green card, but I have NO intention of applying for citizenshipl. Yet I still do not vote in Canadian elections because I do not know if I will ever be able to return permanently. I hope I do, but I have no idea for sure.

Sorry I didn't see this part initially--at first I thought this was a quote from the Elections Canada site.

Surely in your case, your intention is to return to Canada, because that is what you prefer would happen. Circumstances may prevent this happening as it is never possible to perfectly predict the future, but you prefer to return to Canada. One is required to specify a date for the return to Canada, but as far as I can tell that date can be in the far distant future. One can simply cite the date on which one expects one's current responsibilities in the US to end. This could be when one reaches retirement age or one's children reach adulthood, etc. There doesn't seem to be any requirement that the date for return be in the near future.

[Reba]

I still don't plan on arguing it with the Canadian government. If you want to, you go right ahead

[Jausman]

You do not need to argue the case with the Canadian government or engage in complex legal arguments about the Charter. You just need to register with Elections Canada through its website (apparently I'm not allowed to give the URL on this network). You may have a moral dilemma in stating that you intend to return one day, but if you say that you will Elections Canada is not going to argue with you that your stated intention is incorrect.

We are expecting a federal election as early as fall 2008 or as late as fall 2009. You can register at any time and Elections Canada will send you a ballot kit when the election is called.

There is one further condition, though. You have to have lived outside Canada less than five years at the time of the election. There is an exception to this for people working for the Canadian government or for international organizations of which Canada is a member (and their dependants). John