The Palais de justice de Montréal, where Quebec Superior Court sits. Eastern Townships candidates and English-language community representatives are welcoming a court order requiring Élections Québec to prepare its election-day reminder card for mailing in French and English. Photo: Jeangagnon/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
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Eastern Townships election candidates and English-language community representatives are welcoming a Quebec Superior Court order requiring Élections Québec to prepare its election-day reminder card for mailing in French and English, with several pointing to seniors and voters who struggle with digital technology as examples of why mailed English information still matters.
Justice Sylvain Lussier partially granted a provisional injunction Wednesday, Sept. 16, temporarily suspending the relevant provision of Quebec’s Charter of the French Language for 10 days.
The order requires the Chief Electoral Officer to prepare the reminder card in both languages. It does not require Élections Québec to resend the provincial election guide or notice of entry in English, which the court found would be unrealistic and extremely costly at this stage.
The yellow reminder card, expected during the week of Sept. 28, provides election-day information including the polling location, voting hours and candidates in the riding.
The Pulse has followed the dispute since Élections Québec announced Sept. 1 that its main mailed election information would be distributed in French only for the first time in a Quebec general election.
Élections Québec previously told The Pulse that it had wanted to continue providing information in both languages and had raised concerns with Quebec’s French-language authorities beginning in 2023.
Wednesday’s ruling drew positive reactions from local candidates and community representatives, although they emphasized different aspects of the controversy.
Kotsoros focuses on democratic access
Townshippers’ Association Executive Director Denis Kotsoros said the organization had not yet discussed the ruling internally when The Pulse reached him, meaning his comments were his own reaction rather than an official Townshippers’ position.
Kotsoros said his main concern is making the electoral process as accessible and inclusive as possible.
He also defended Élections Québec, saying the agency had been placed in a difficult position by the rules governing its communications and deserved credit for trying to help voters navigate the situation.
Kotsoros said one or two people had contacted Townshippers’ for assistance and that the organization had been able to help direct them toward information available through Élections Québec.
He said, however, that relying on digital alternatives does not work equally well for everyone.
“My mother’s great using an iPad, but don’t ask her to use a QR code,” Kotsoros said.
Kotsoros said Townshippers’ generally approaches the question as one of democratic participation rather than primarily as a language dispute.
He said measures that make the electoral system more inclusive and accessible ultimately strengthen the democratic process.
Fontaine says Wales Home residents questioned the change
Richmond Quebec Liberal Party candidate Hugo Fontaine said the ruling addressed concerns he had heard directly from seniors during a visit to the Wales Home the previous day.
Fontaine told The Pulse residents raised the French-only election information with him and said some were deeply frustrated by the change.
“Some told us even that they were so upset they were not sure if they were going to vote,” Fontaine said.
Fontaine said the PLQ had opposed the French-only approach and welcomed the court’s intervention.
“We’re happy to see that the court has intervened, but it shouldn’t have to go that far,” he said.
According to Fontaine, some residents simply wanted to understand why election information they were accustomed to receiving in English would no longer be mailed that way.
He said some asked the Liberal visitors to intervene, prompting them to explain that they were not the government.
Fontaine also noted that Élections Québec itself had not chosen the French-only approach, a point consistent with what the agency previously told The Pulse.
He argued that the English-speaking community is part of the Townships’ distinct regional character and should be recognized in government communications.
Belleau says added steps can become barriers
Saint-François Liberal candidate Jacqueline “Jackie” Belleau also welcomed the ruling while saying she was disappointed that the dispute had reached the courts.
“But obviously I’m ecstatic. I welcome the decision fully,” Belleau told The Pulse.
Belleau said she had been in contact with Grace Village and other organizations serving residents who may have difficulty accessing information digitally.
For Belleau, the central concern was the additional step required when mailed election information was available only in French and voters had to use a QR code, website or another method to find English information.
She said she had repeatedly heard concerns about how difficult those steps can be for some people, particularly those who are less comfortable with technology or do not know where to turn next.
Belleau said those concerns had led some people to question whether the system was making it harder for them to exercise their right to vote.
She also argued that government has a responsibility to represent all citizens and said she was concerned the controversy was weakening trust among some English-speaking residents.
Belleau praised PLQ Leader Charles Milliard for speaking against the French-only approach earlier in the campaign.
DeNora says she saw the problem firsthand
Orford Canadian Party of Quebec candidate Ngaire DeNora said the issue became concrete for her after she recently helped a person in their 70s who, she said, does not read French understand election material mailed in French.
DeNora said the experience made her concerned about how French-only mailouts could affect some older residents who cannot easily read the material they receive.
She also questioned whether QR codes are a practical substitute for printed information for every voter.
“In fact, the person that I helped last week doesn’t even have a cell phone,” DeNora said.
DeNora said she worries that making election information harder to access could discourage some people from voting.
“So, I think the court decision is a very good one,” she said.
She said issues that create obstacles for voters should be challenged and brought to public attention.
TALQ calls ruling a step forward
TALQ, a provincial organization representing English-language community organizations and individuals, described Wednesday’s ruling as a major victory for democratic participation.
“This is an important victory for English-speaking Quebecers and for democratic participation in Quebec,” TALQ President Eva Ludvig said in a statement.
TALQ said it views the decision as recognizing the importance of voters being able to access the information needed to exercise their right to vote.
The organization also emphasized practical barriers faced by some people who rely on mailed information, arguing that QR codes, smartphones and telephone alternatives do not necessarily provide equivalent access for every voter.
TALQ said it would have preferred to see all election information documents provided directly in both French and English, but welcomed the court’s decision to require the reminder card to be prepared in both languages.
Ludvig said the ruling represents a significant step even though the guide and notice of entry will not be resent.
TALQ also framed the dispute as one in which protection of the French language and access to English-language election information do not have to be competing goals.
“Those objectives are not in conflict,” Ludvig said.
The organization said it will continue following the legal proceedings and advocating for access to electoral and other essential public information in English.
Wednesday’s order remains provisional and does not settle the broader legal challenge surrounding Quebec’s language legislation and election information.
For the Oct. 5 election, however, Élections Québec must prepare the reminder card for mailing in both French and English.
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