Rotating Canada Post strike prompts Élections Montréal to hire private delivery companies

A rotating strike at Canada Post has forced Élections Montréal to find an urgent workaround for delivering voter information ahead of the municipal election on Nov. 2.

Instead of the usual postal service, six private companies—five couriers and one bailiff firm—have stepped in to deliver more than 700,000 voter cards, a last-minute solution that comes with a significant price increase.

“I feel like it’s all a mess all of this, they have no business doing things this way and now anybody can take my mail…” said Montrealer Guy Frechette, voicing frustration over the change in delivery.

With the strike delaying the first batch of notices, Élections Montréal divided the city into six sections, each handled by one of the private suppliers.

“These suppliers have been distributing door-to-door since last weekend,” explained Sébastien Trottier, a spokesperson for Élections Montréal.

Roughly 650,000 voter cards went out through these companies, with another 50,000 delivered in-house by the election office. Trottier noted the cost for previous deliveries through Canada Post had been $1.8 million; the six private suppliers have pushed that estimate to about $2.7 million, a 50 per cent increase.

Dozens of additional staff have also been brought in to prepare ballots and set up advance voting, which begins this weekend.

“We’ll have more than 200 voting places across Montreal, roughly 800 polling stations with 3,000 people working,” said Charles-André Goulet, deputy returning officer.

More than 1.1 million people are registered to vote, slightly up from 2021, and for the first time, university students can cast ballots right on campus.

“We’re looking at more or less 41 cards that will be used for student voting. This is a first in Quebec municipal elections,” Goulet said.

However, not all Montrealers have been satisfied with the new delivery system. Some reported that information cards were left unsecured at mailbox doors, exposing personal details.

Trottier acknowledged the challenges, particularly in residential buildings.

“It was indeed a challenge to deliver to residential complexes or residential buildings. It was much easier to single homes with mailboxes. That was a challenge for the different suppliers, because Canada Post, they can access these mailboxes. They have the keys, obviously the suppliers, we hired, they don’t. So they did everything they could to deliver safely,” he said.

Despite the bumps in delivery, Élections Montréal says voters should have all the information they need in time for election day.

“On November 2nd, we will have more than 450 voting locations all across the city in the 19 boroughs,” Trottier confirmed.