Conservative 'Robocalls' tricked voters in last election

[mentalfloss]

Well as time passes you will find that only using the G&M is not always viable for info. I find the NP does a much better job of Ripping Cons a new one as they say.

What? You assume I only use G&M?

YOU HEATHEN.

Anyway, I'm actually surprised that the journo for that article missed the red herring (whether intentional or not). He's the same guy that runs the poll site: threehundredeight.com (plug plug plug); he usually has pretty insightful commentary on party dynamics.
---

If you want some more Tory-loving from me though, this just came out:

Conservative backbencher lays blame for robocalls with Elections Canada

OTTAWA—A Conservative backbencher is suggesting Elections Canada may be to blame for the robo-calls affair.

“I suspect that at the end of the day, if Elections Canada has the resources to do a proper investigation, they’ll find they’re themselves significantly responsible,” Saskatchewan MP Maurice Vellacott said in a statement.

“That tech issues with marrying (Elections Canada) lists to available, electronic phone lists is part of the problem, and in a few instances there may have been malfeasance by one party or the other.” Vellacott says there have been numerous address errors by Elections Canada in each of the six federal elections he has contested.

“This is no reflection on our faithful, local returning officer ... and their office workers. The errors and misinformation are compiled and compounded by Elections Canada’s head office,” he said.

“We don’t even bother trying to chase down, trace back and correct all these Elections Canada errors anymore. Too much valuable campaign time would be used up on such a project.”

Vellacott says Elections Canada has flawed voting lists and often gives voters incorrect information.

"There is no voter enumeration just before every election any more, but the Elections Canada voter list across the country is updated based on income tax filings or other federal and provincial programs — not a perfect system by any means,” he said.

“Because Elections Canada too frequently provides incorrect information, and secondly because technological problems occur with trying to merge Elections Canada info for phone lists, there is a significant potential for error.

“Hired live phoners or automated calling systems are only as good as the data provided to them. You know the saying, ‘garbage in, garbage out.’”

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/...lame-for-robocalls-with-elections-canada?bn=1

 

[Cannuck]

The more I read about this, the more I think of "A Few Good Men".

 

[Goober]

What? You assume I only use G&M?

YOU HEATHEN.
]

Heathen, heathen you say. Only when I read the TO Star.

I'm kind of surprised that G&M would post a misleading article like this. Clearly, even if the number of total votes were up last election, it does not mean that other voters were not dissuaded from the polls. Does the media really think we're this dumb?

If robo-calls were meant to keep voters away, they failed miserably - The Globe and Mail

A number of writers left that heathen rag the Star and are now at the Globe. Pity them all.

 

[mentalfloss]

A number of writers left that heathen rag the Star and are now at the Globe. Pity them all.

You... you...

 

[Mowich]

Tory support steady despite robo-call, e-snooping uproars: poll

bill curry

OTTAWA— Globe and Mail Update

Posted on Sunday, March 4, 2012 10:00PM EST

A month of controversy over pensions, privacy and Pierre Poutine has failed to dent support for the Conservative Party, according to a new poll by Nanos Research.

Support for the Tories remained exactly the same – at 35.7 per cent – compared to a month earlier.

Support for the Liberals climbed slightly to 29.5 per cent from 27.6 per cent, while the NDP’s numbers were essentially unchanged at 25 per cent.

The survey found jobs and the economy now dominate as the top issue of concern for Canadians, which pollster Nik Nanos said may explain why voters are largely unmoved by the daily furor in the House of Commons.

“Regardless of the noise related to the robo-call affair, there hasn’t been any material impact on Conservative support,” Mr. Nanos told The Globe. “The only way this can change is if there’s something associated with the Prime Minister or senior advisers to the Prime Minister, or the Conservative campaign.”

Nanos Research conducted a telephone survey of 1,203 Canadians for The Globe and Mail and CTV between Feb. 25 and Feb. 29. The results are compared to a Nanos Research survey of 1,201 Canadians conducted Jan. 20 to Jan. 23.

The political focus on allegations of vote suppression during the 2011 election was triggered by a Feb. 25 Ottawa Citizen report detailing Elections Canada’s investigation into some of the allegations. Later in the week it emerged through court documents that Elections Canada is looking to find out who ordered misleading robo-calls with a throwaway cell phone under the name Pierre Poutine of Separatist Street in Joliette Que.

The Nanos survey was also conducted shortly after Interim Liberal Leader Bob Rae apologized for the fact that a Liberal staffer was behind an anonymous Twitter account called Vikileaks30 that posted personal information about Public Safety Minister Vic Toews. The account claimed to be set up to protest against Bill C-30, which would expand police surveillance powers over the Internet.
Mr. Nanos said the Vikileaks story likely reinforced the cynicism among voters that no party is above dirty tricks.

“I think for many average Canadians who are very cynical, they find it hard to believe that politics of any colour is ethical,” he said. “The unfortunate timing of the Vikileaks thing for the Liberals basically illustrated the point that, you know what, there are rogue elements in parties that do things that are inappropriate and unsavory. The thing is that on the robo-call affair, and when we look at politics, I’m not sure that there’s any moral high ground that any of the parties can claim.”

After jobs and the economy – which was listed as the most important national issue of concern by 25.8 per cent of respondents – health care was second at 15.9 per cent. The environment was third at 6.4 per cent, followed by education (5.4 per cent) and the debt and deficit (5.3 per cent.)

The NDP has a lot riding on its leadership race later this month. Interim Leader Nycole Turmel is not popular with voters. Only 7.8 per cent of respondents said she had the best vision for Canada, which puts her slightly behind Green Party Leader Elizabeth May at 8.1 per cent. Prime Minister Stephen Harper was chosen by 32.6 per cent, followed by 16.2 per cent who chose Mr. Rae.



Tory support steady despite robo-call, e-snooping uproars: poll - The Globe and Mail

 

[mentalfloss]

Yea, they're using the Nanos poll for the last few days of the month. I can't wait until 308 releases the summary for the month. I don't expect it to be much different than last month, I just like having a reflection of all polls with fancy graphs.

QP is starting up. I'll be posting anything "newsy" if it comes forward.

 

[Goober]

Yea, they're using the Nanos poll for the last few days of the month. I can't wait until 308 releases the summary for the month. I don't expect it to be much different than last month, I just like having a reflection of all polls with fancy graphs.

QP is starting up. I'll be posting anything "newsy" if it comes forward.

I think this scandal has legs. The way the Cons are shooting themselves in the proverbial foot is again demonstrated by such a BS statement Mastro.
As if he hasn't made enough shots to his own foot. And he is the lead man.

Tories demand Liberals release call records – but refuse to follow suit - The Globe and Mail

“The Leader of the Liberal Party knows full well, every household that they called, every originating phone number they called them from, and, in fact, when those calls were made,” he said in response to a question from Bob Rae. “When will he make those phone records public? Because I believe when those phone records are made public, the Liberal Party will have fingered itself for each and every one of these calls that they allege had taken place.”

But when asked later by reporters if the Conservatives were prepared to release their own records, Mr. Del Mastro said: “No, because obviously our party is not behind the calls. We know that. We believe the Liberal Party has in fact made these allegations and they’ve made these allegations knowing full well that they’ve paid these companies millions of dollars to makes calls to hundreds of thousands of households across the country.”

 

[JLM]

Tory support steady despite robo-call, e-snooping uproars: poll

bill curry

OTTAWA— Globe and Mail Update

Posted on Sunday, March 4, 2012 10:00PM EST

A month of controversy over pensions, privacy and Pierre Poutine has failed to dent support for the Conservative Party, according to a new poll by Nanos Research.

Support for the Tories remained exactly the same – at 35.7 per cent – compared to a month earlier.

Support for the Liberals climbed slightly to 29.5 per cent from 27.6 per cent, while the NDP’s numbers were essentially unchanged at 25 per cent.

The survey found jobs and the economy now dominate as the top issue of concern for Canadians, which pollster Nik Nanos said may explain why voters are largely unmoved by the daily furor in the House of Commons.

“Regardless of the noise related to the robo-call affair, there hasn’t been any material impact on Conservative support,” Mr. Nanos told The Globe. “The only way this can change is if there’s something associated with the Prime Minister or senior advisers to the Prime Minister, or the Conservative campaign.”

Nanos Research conducted a telephone survey of 1,203 Canadians for The Globe and Mail and CTV between Feb. 25 and Feb. 29. The results are compared to a Nanos Research survey of 1,201 Canadians conducted Jan. 20 to Jan. 23.

The political focus on allegations of vote suppression during the 2011 election was triggered by a Feb. 25 Ottawa Citizen report detailing Elections Canada’s investigation into some of the allegations. Later in the week it emerged through court documents that Elections Canada is looking to find out who ordered misleading robo-calls with a throwaway cell phone under the name Pierre Poutine of Separatist Street in Joliette Que.

The Nanos survey was also conducted shortly after Interim Liberal Leader Bob Rae apologized for the fact that a Liberal staffer was behind an anonymous Twitter account called Vikileaks30 that posted personal information about Public Safety Minister Vic Toews. The account claimed to be set up to protest against Bill C-30, which would expand police surveillance powers over the Internet.
Mr. Nanos said the Vikileaks story likely reinforced the cynicism among voters that no party is above dirty tricks.

“I think for many average Canadians who are very cynical, they find it hard to believe that politics of any colour is ethical,” he said. “The unfortunate timing of the Vikileaks thing for the Liberals basically illustrated the point that, you know what, there are rogue elements in parties that do things that are inappropriate and unsavory. The thing is that on the robo-call affair, and when we look at politics, I’m not sure that there’s any moral high ground that any of the parties can claim.”

After jobs and the economy – which was listed as the most important national issue of concern by 25.8 per cent of respondents – health care was second at 15.9 per cent. The environment was third at 6.4 per cent, followed by education (5.4 per cent) and the debt and deficit (5.3 per cent.)

The NDP has a lot riding on its leadership race later this month. Interim Leader Nycole Turmel is not popular with voters. Only 7.8 per cent of respondents said she had the best vision for Canada, which puts her slightly behind Green Party Leader Elizabeth May at 8.1 per cent. Prime Minister Stephen Harper was chosen by 32.6 per cent, followed by 16.2 per cent who chose Mr. Rae.



Tory support steady despite robo-call, e-snooping uproars: poll - The Globe and Mail

N.D.P. is a "flash in the pan" that started to die when Layton died.

 

[Goober]

N.D.P. is a "flash in the pan" that started to die when Layton died.

Robocalls: Database at the heart of Conservatives' computer system likely key to cracking mystery | Full Comment | National Post

Stephen Harper and Guy Giorno, his campaign manager, have come over like T.S. Eliot’s Macavity the Cat in relation to the robocalls saga — whatever time the deed took place, they weren’t there.

Both have made public denials about any links between robocalls and the official campaign.

How can they be so sure? Perhaps because they already have a pretty good idea who the culprit is. The digital trail likely ends inside the Conservative Party’s own computer system — specifically the Constituency Information Management System database that contains voter information and telephone numbers.

Anyone who wanted to make robocalls sending Liberal and NDP voters to the wrong polling station, similar to the one received by Liberal supporters in Guelph, would likely need CIMS to identify and then contact them. But CIMS is tightly held by the party, with access password protected.

“You can’t do a transaction in CIMS without it being logged. The party will know who was doing what, how long they were on for and what information they were looking for,” said someone with knowledge of the database. “It’s a difficult system to do something illegal on. It’s jealously guarded information.”

No-one believes that a co-ordinated voter suppression campaign could be carried out without CIMS — the last thing anyone seeking to boost the Conservative turnout would want to do is call its own supporters and mis-direct them.

So a detailed inventory of who was using the CIMS database in the ridings allegedly hit by robocalls should narrow down the search for the culprit considerably. A spokesman for the Conservative Party said the Elections Commissioner, who is investigating the issue, has not yet asked for this information.

The strong suspicion among people familiar with the Conservative campaign is that the voter suppression effort may be the work of a rogue telemarketing company, employed by one or a number of riding associations to identify Conservatives and then get out the vote.

The most frequently mentioned company in connection with this regard is Toronto-based Responsive Marketing Group, which worked on the national campaign, particularly the 75 ridings on the Tories’ “target” list.

 

[TenPenny]

Is there any documented proof of someone who tried to vote but couldn't because of these calls?

 

[Goober]

Is there any documented proof of someone who tried to vote but couldn't because of these calls?

Ask Elections Canada as they and the RCMP and possibly the CRTC are investigating. But it appears that by the number of public complaints reported in the newspapers / TV along with the employees in the call center in Northern Ontario that I would say yes.

 

[MHz]

Perhaps we should invite Russians or Iranians to come over and monitor the elections.

 

[Vanni Fucci]

UPDATED - Elections Canada: "Some political parties did not comply" with request that polling station info be for internal use only - Inside Politics

Hmm...I think I have a pretty good idea which party didn't comply with EC recommendations to not direct voters to polling stations...

 

[Colpy]

Sense from Wente and Michael Bliss....

Robo-calls? Get a grip. We’re Canadian - The Globe and Mail

 

[Vanni Fucci]

Just a thought...if the Cons are not guilty of impropriety regarding their campaign, why were they so quick to throw Sona under the bus?

 

[mentalfloss]

I think this scandal has legs. The way the Cons are shooting themselves in the proverbial foot is again demonstrated by such a BS statement Mastro.
As if he hasn't made enough shots to his own foot. And he is the lead man.

Tories demand Liberals release call records – but refuse to follow suit - The Globe and Mail

“The Leader of the Liberal Party knows full well, every household that they called, every originating phone number they called them from, and, in fact, when those calls were made,” he said in response to a question from Bob Rae. “When will he make those phone records public? Because I believe when those phone records are made public, the Liberal Party will have fingered itself for each and every one of these calls that they allege had taken place.”

But when asked later by reporters if the Conservatives were prepared to release their own records, Mr. Del Mastro said: “No, because obviously our party is not behind the calls. We know that. We believe the Liberal Party has in fact made these allegations and they’ve made these allegations knowing full well that they’ve paid these companies millions of dollars to makes calls to hundreds of thousands of households across the country.”

That's the worst kind of hypocrisy.

If the Tories want to absolve themselves of looking guilty, this is not the way to go about it.

 

[Goober]

Sense from Wente and Michael Bliss....

Robo-calls? Get a grip. We’re Canadian - The Globe and Mail

Margaret Wente - Really -
This is not about what Liberals think of harper - mind you he has not handled this well at all.

31,000, and her comments are ludicrous

"There weren’t even any hanging chads. Elections Canada says 31,000 Canadians have complained, but the vast majority of these complaints (“somebody called me at 10 p.m.”) seem trivial"

Has Maggie voted - No electronic ballots - Hence no chads - she received a call - Great tell Elections Canada and the RCMP to stop their investigation - Well check out that call center in Northern Ontario, may be something to that one. Guess Maggie did not have any secret info from her unknown caller.
Was his name Poutine, surfacing just to chat with Maggie - Well will never know.


31,000 compared to about 500 in the last election. Must be a typo.

Perhaps we can have Maggie solve other issues for us and let us know what should or should not be investigated, based upon her ability to arrive at that conclusion from 1, yep, 1 call.
All Maggie needs is 1 Clue. Yes she needs at least 1 Clue

 

[Cannuck]

Is there any documented proof of someone who tried to vote but couldn't because of these calls?

Irrelevant. It is enough if somebody tried to prevent somebody. If they tried but failed it simply means they are incompetent.

 

[Locutus]

Tories steady despite robocall accusations, poll shows



While allegations surrounding robocalls have mesmerized media and triggered enraged accusations in the House of Commons, they have had little effect on Canadians' support for the Conservative party, according to a new poll.

A new study by Nanos Research for CTV and The Globe and Mail found the Conservatives holding steady as the top choice for 35.7 of those polled.





Tories steady despite robocall accusations, poll shows | CTV Edmonton

 

[mentalfloss]

Liberals will release election phone records - Politics - CBC News

Conservatives refuse to release phone records | CTV Winnipeg


Gee.. I wonder who's more trustworthy?