Inuit Suffrage - 1950
The federal government had pushed for a division in the legal definitions of Aboriginal peoples, and thus, the rights and programs which applied to each group. In 1951, the Inuit were determined to not be included in the BNA Act's definition of First Nations. This push to divide in the definition, in part, led to the Inuit being granted the right to vote a decade before status First Nations.
After the Second World Ward, in 1948, a parliamentary committee made a reccomendation that Aboriginal peoples receive electoral rights. Inuit peoples' right to vote, without restriction, was granted in the year of 1950. This came hand in hand with Inuit persons then being permitted to run as candidates for public office. However, another issue remained, which was that of accessibility. A very large percentage of Inuit peoples lived in remote regions of the country. At the time, the government made little effort to develop means for Inuit to exercise their right to vote. As a result, even after this large win for Indigenous suffrage, the voice of Inuit peoples in the nations democratic process was relatively unheard.
However, new changes were implemented for the federal election of 1962. The developments included different methods of allowing for it to be more accessible for Inuit. This involved programs such as opening voting stations in all Inuit communities in the Eastern Arctic.
More work has been done in order to ensure accessibility for Inuit in the elections process, including instating a program for special mail in ballots for registration and voting. Today, the modern technology that there is access to, which bridges much of the communication gap the country had in the past, further allows for new methods of ensuring the right to vote is exercised by all those who choose. This has been an important process, not only for Inuit peoples, but also for Canada as a whole, as ensuring that the nation truly has free and fair elections is the foundation for progress and the path to a truly egalitarian society.
However, new changes were implemented for the federal election of 1962. The developments included different methods of allowing for it to be more accessible for Inuit. This involved programs such as opening voting stations in all Inuit communities in the Eastern Arctic.
More work has been done in order to ensure accessibility for Inuit in the elections process, including instating a program for special mail in ballots for registration and voting. Today, the modern technology that there is access to, which bridges much of the communication gap the country had in the past, further allows for new methods of ensuring the right to vote is exercised by all those who choose. This has been an important process, not only for Inuit peoples, but also for Canada as a whole, as ensuring that the nation truly has free and fair elections is the foundation for progress and the path to a truly egalitarian society.