The chaotic story of the right to vote in Canada

From https://humanrights.ca/story/the-chaotic-story-of-the-right-to-vote-in-canada

• Until 1874, all voters had to announce their vote publicly. Unscrupulous candidates could bribe potential voters with alcohol, or hire a gang of bullies to protect their supporters while scaring off his opponent’s voters. This combination of gangs and drunkenness meant that violence at polling stations was commonplace, and at least 20 people died in 20 different election riots before 1867.

• In 1874, Canada introduced the secret ballot, so that people now voted privately. This made it harder to intimidate voters or to buy their vote, because you could never be certain for whom they were going to vote. It was a great improvement, though the problems of violence and corruption did not go away entirely.

• By 1874, Canada had responsible government and the secret ballot. Despite this, many people were still very critical Canada’s political system, because it severely restricted who had the right to vote. 

• Women and Indigenous people were almost completely excluded from voting and few minorities were represented in the legislatures. Initially, Roman Catholics were also banned from voting, though most restrictions on Catholic voting were removed by the 1830s. Enslaved people were similarly banned from voting until 1834, when slavery was abolished throughout the British Empire, including in the territories that would become Canada.