Government of Canada introduces measures to further protect Canada's electoral processes and strengthen democracy

OTTAWA, ON, March 26, 2026 /CNW/ - Today, the Honourable Steven MacKinnon, Minister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, announced three initiatives to ensure Canada's democracy continues to be amongst the strongest in the world, and that it is protected from emerging threats at all times.

Amendments to the Canada Elections Act

Regular evaluations and updates to the Canada Elections Act help maintain the strength and resilience of Canada's electoral system.

Bill C-25, the Strong and Free Elections Act includes amendments to address recommendations from the Public Inquiry into Foreign Interference in Federal Electoral Processes and Democratic Institutions (PIFI), the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) and the Commissioner of Canada Elections (CCE). These targeted amendments will further strengthen and secure Canada's federal elections by:

• Ensuring electors are protected against unlawful attempts to influence their vote, not only once an election is called.
• Mitigating long ballots, which challenge the administration and accessibility of federal elections for voters, candidates and election workers.
• Banning sophisticated deepfakes of electoral actors that intend to mislead Canadians into thinking they are real.
• Closing potential channels for foreign funding in electoral processes.
• Protecting nomination and leadership contests from threats, including against undue foreign influence, bribery, and intimidation over whom a person votes for in a contest.
• Adding new privacy policy requirements for federal political parties, and new disclosure requirements in the event of a data breach.
• Strengthening the CCE's enforcement mandate, including by increasing administrative monetary penalties for violations of the Act.

Enhancement of Canada's capacity to detect and respond to foreign information threats at all times

The government will invest $31.5 M over five years to enhance the capacity of Global Affairs Canada's Rapid Response Mechanism (GAC RRM) and strengthen its ability to detect and respond to foreign information threats that aim to harm Canadian interests at all times. GAC RRM works with federal departments and agencies to detect foreign information activities that may impact Canada's interests, and with international partners to detect foreign information manipulation, interference and transnational repression aimed at democracies.

Updated Cabinet Directive on Coordinated Response to Threats to Elections (CRTE)

The current Cabinet Directive on the Critical Election Incident Public Protocol (CEIPP) was established in 2019 to ensure coherence and consistency in Canada's approach to protecting elections, including by providing a process for publicly informing Canadians in the event of incidents that threaten Canada's ability to have a free and fair election. The Protocol will be replaced with the Cabinet Directive on the Coordinated Response to Threats to Elections (CRTE) to:

• Formalize enhancements recommended by PIFI, including adding a process to appoint an individual external to government to the CRTE Panel, in consultation with political parties and leaders in the Senate.
• Outline the Panel's role as coordinator of a whole-of-government response to attempts at election interference.
• Enhance communications with Canadians about threats to elections and the Government's efforts to combat those threats through regular reporting, including an after-action report following an election, and proactive communications about the tools available to the government to respond to threats.

These measures reinforce Canada's commitment to free and fair elections and to maintaining public confidence in Canada's democratic institutions.

The Government of Canada is committed to ensuring Canada's democracy is among the strongest and most stable in the world. Regular review of and updates to the CEA help ensure the fundamental legislative framework continues to keep pace with the realities and challenges facing Canada's democracy.

Quotes

"The Government of Canada continues to take decisive action to protect our democracy from threats such as foreign interference. Recognizing the persistent and evolving nature of these threats, today we are introducing measures to strengthen the transparency and resilience of our electoral system and enhance the tools available to us to ensure we remain vigilant against threats every day--not just during election periods."

--The Honourable Steven MacKinnon, Minister of Transport, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister Responsible for Democratic Institutions

Quick Facts

• The Strong and Free Elections Act also includes the renaming of 19 ridings. New riding names were proposed by Members of Parliament currently representing those ridings.
• The amendments respond, in whole or in part, to PIFI recommendations 31, 40, 41, 42, 43, and 49.
• The enhancement of GAC RRM's capabilities to be able to detect attempts at foreign interference at all times responds to PIFI recommendations 10 and 11.
• The establishment of the new CRTE responds to PIFI recommendations 12, 13, 14 and 15.
• The CRTE Panel of five senior public servants will include an additional external member, appointed upon consensus amongst political parties.
• GAC RRM is a member of the Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections Task Force (SITE TF), a whole-of-government working group that coordinates federal collection and analysis of threats to Canada's federal election processes.

Related Products

• Backgrounder: Proposed amendments to the Canada Elections Act

Associated Links

• Protecting democracy
• Global Affairs Canada Rapid Response Mechanism
• Cabinet Directive on the Coordinated Response to Threats to Elections (CRTE)

Stay Connected

https://www.canada.ca/en/democratic-institutions.html

SOURCE Minister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Contact : For more information (media only), please contact: Marie-Justine Torres, Press Secretary and Senior Communications Advisor, Office of the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, 613-327-5918, [email protected]; Media Relations: Privy Council Office, 613-957-5420, [email protected]