Bill C-424

1st Session, 41st Parliament,

60-61 Elizabeth II, 2011-2012

house of commons of canada

BILL C-424

An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act (contestation of election and punishment)

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

1. Paragraphs 500(5)(a) and (b) of the Canada Elections Act are replaced by the following:

(a) on summary conviction, to a fine of not more than $20,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or to both; or

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine of not more than $50,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than five years, or to both.

2. The portion of subsection 524(1) of the Act before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

524. (1) Any elector who was eligible to vote in an electoral district, any candidate in an electoral district and the Chief Electoral Officer, may, by application to a competent court, contest the election in that electoral district on the grounds that

3. Section 526 of the Act is replaced by the following:

526. (1) An application made by a person other than the Chief Electoral Officer must be accompanied by security for costs in the amount of $1,000, and must be served on the Attorney General of Canada, the Chief Electoral Officer, the returning officer of the electoral district in question and all the candidates in that electoral district.

(2) An application made by the Chief Electoral Officer must be served on the Attorney General of Canada, the returning officer of the electoral district in question and all the candidates in that electoral district.

(3) The court may, if it considers it just, increase the amount of the security referred to in section 1.