Chief
electoral officer Kim Poffenroth told MLAs on Thursday her office did
let Premier Blaine Higgs's staff know that preparations for an early
election were being made. (Sam Farley/CBC)
The
head of Elections New Brunswick says her office was in contact with
Premier Blaine Higgs's staff last fall, warning that money was being
spent based on Higgs's musings about an early election call.
Chief
electoral officer Kimberly Poffenroth appeared before the
legislature's committee on procedure, privileges and
legislative officers Thursday.
The appearance followed a
letter she wrote to the committee in January explaining her office
spent $1.7 million on preparations for an election that Higgs never
called.
Higgs opened the door to a snap election call last September and did not rule out the possibility until Nov. 3.
"We
were ready to pull the trigger. I've got to say that," Higgs said in
November. "We were. It wasn't an idle discussion here. It was real."
Poffenroth
referred to a photo of a Higgs election bus last fall as proof that the
premier was serious about a possible election call. (Submitted by Charles Doucet)
Poffenroth said in her letter that it's her job to be ready to hold an election, "no matter when it is called."
In
response to a question from Liberal committee member Marco LeBlanc on
Thursday, Poffenroth said her office did let the premier's staff know
preparations were being made.
"We
are spending money, we're getting questions, if there's any insight one
way or the other, please let us know," she told the committee.
Poffenrorth said she received no information from the Premier's Office definitive enough to halt the preparations.
The only message she received was "continue with your work, continue with your preparations," Poffenroth said.
Preparations started 'in earnest' by September
Poffenroth wrote
in January that Elections New Brunswick spent $1,750,808 on expenses
such as polling station rentals, returning office rentals, phone and
Internet connections and training for returning officers. That money
will have to be spent again when the election is held.
Another $1.5 million was spent on equipment such as tabulation machines and laptops, which can be used this year.
Poffenroth
called Higgs's first comment in June about the possibility of an early
election "a very off the cuff comment," adding that she wasn't that
concerned at that point.
She said the possibility
"really started in earnest" by late September. She said there's no
specific threshold for her to start preparations, but told the committee
she listens to chatter from political circles and uses her best
judgment.
Liberal
Marco LeBlanc asked Poffenroth about the communication between her
office and the premier's as Elections New Brunswick prepared for a
possible early election. (Sam Farley/CBC)
Poffenroth
moved training for returning officers — which covers everything from
accepting nomination papers to selecting polling station locations
— from spring of 2024 to October.
Elections New
Brunswick also scrambled to hire enough returning officers. Of the 49
electoral districts, Poffenroth said by the hiring deadline of Sept. 15,
there were still seven without a returning officer.
Higgs speculated in September about calling an early election and didn't end the speculation until early November. (Ed Hunter/CBC)
She said
preparing for the possible election meant Elections New Brunswick had
to postpone work on its strategic plan and longer-term projects like new
virtual databases for both poll workers and MLAs.
Poffenroth
and her staff were able to stop the preparatory work when she
ultimately reached a point she "had come to the conclusion, at least in
my opinion, it wasn't going to happen before Christmas."
'A cost that probably didn't have to be there'
Progressive Conservative MLAs on the committee acknowledged the difficult position Poffenroth was caught in.
"I
think you were caught in a place that you had to prepare for, it's your
job, and I appreciate that you were ready," said Jeff Carr.
Progressive Conservative MLA Jeff Carr agreed Poffenroth was put in a difficult position. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
"It came with a cost, unfortunately. A cost that probably didn't have to be there … but you had to prepare for that."
Speaking to reporters, LeBlanc said he hopes a "better decision" will be made regarding any future election speculation.
Green Leader David Coon called Poffenroth's preparations the right decision, "under the circumstances."
Green
Leader David Coon said he wants to see legislation that requires
advanced warning for any early elections to ensure Elections New
Brunswick has enough time to prepare. (Sam Farley/CBC)
He
called for legislation requiring a warning before an election call to
allow Elections New Brunswick the time to be properly prepared.
The next provincial election is scheduled for Oct. 21, though nothing prevents Higgs from calling it before then.
But
because of all the preparation done in the fall, Poffenroth told the
committee "it will be an unusually calm summer for the summer before an
election because we've pretty much got everything done."
Sam
Farley is a Fredericton-based reporter at CBC New Brunswick. Originally
from Boston, he is a journalism graduate of the University of King's
College in Halifax. He can be reached at sam.farley@cbc.ca
87 Comments
David Amos
"I think you were caught in a place that you
had to prepare for, it's your job, and I appreciate that you were
ready," said Jeff Carr.
David Amos
Content Deactivated
"Progressive Conservative MLA Jeff Carr agreed Poffenroth was put in a difficult position. "
He was as well
David Amos
Content Deactivated
"Liberal Marco LeBlanc asked Poffenroth about the
communication between her office and the premier's as Elections New
Brunswick prepared for a possible early election."
Of that I have no doubt
David Amos
Content Deactivated
"Green Leader David Coon said he wants to see
legislation that requires advanced warning for any early elections to
ensure Elections New Brunswick has enough time to prepare."
Dream on
David Amos
Content Deactivated
My quote of the Green Leader goes "Poof"
Surprise Surprise Surpise
David Amos
Content Deactivated
Go figure why this comment section got shut down so fast
Ottawa floats new options for electricity rules that drew ire of Alberta and Saskatchewan
Both provinces invoked legislation for the first time to oppose strategy
Joel Dryden · CBC News · Posted: Feb 16, 2024 2:42 PM AST | Last Updated: 1 hour ago
Lou Bell
Happy days are here again . It's like Grounghog
Day come budget time the last 5 years . Celebration and a huge surplus
for the winners on the right . And a big surplus and a huge loss for
those on the left . For the last 5 years I've been on the right side .
Wilbur Ross
Reply to Lou Bell
Not delusional at all.
David Amos
Reply to Wilbur Ross
Surely you jest
David Amos
Reply to Lou Bell
And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon
Little boy blue and the man in the moon
"When you coming home, dad?" "I don't know when"
But we'll get together then
You know we'll have a good time then
Kenneth Dwight
The usual Higgs defenders are falling silent now. At one
point there were literally hundreds of them. Now just a handful and
they always try to change the subject to Trudeau did this, Trudeau did
that.
Laughable.
Lou Bell
Content Deactivated
Reply to Kenneth Dwight
Lou Bell
Reply to Lou Bell
Doubled down on what Prmier Graham dumped down the tubes with the 65 million dollar Atcon deal .
Lou Bell
Reply to Lou Bell
Kenny ? Kennnnyyy ??? You're right , someone went silent .
David Amos
Content Deactivated
Reply to Lou Bell
Or Kenny was flagged
David Amos
Reply to Kenneth Dwight
Well???
valmond landry
were in a bad predicament we have one man
running the show, my way or the highway, while we have two other party
watching the show without having to much to say ,what a circus!
Lou Bell
Reply to valmond landry Naw . That 130 million dollar attempt at taking an undisclosed taxpayer dollars was a circus .
David Amos
Reply to valmond landry
Welcome back to the circus
Geoff MacDonald
There was a specific personality from a certain
taxpayer funded news outlet that wouldn't stop fanning the flames
around a possible election.
David Amos
Reply to Geoff MacDonald
You must mean JP
Graham McCormack
Reply to Geoff MacDonald
There was a specific personality from the a
certain taxpayer funded Premier's office that wouldn't stop fanning the
flames around a possible election. So much so that the PC party got
the campaign bus ready.
Sarah Brown
Reply to Graham McCormack
The blame lies solely with Higgs…no one else
Donald LeBlanc
Reply to Geoff MacDonald
A bus is a bus.
Donald LeBlanc
Reply to Geoff MacDonald
No one fanned the flames more than Higgs himself.
Lou Bell
Reply to Geoff MacDonald
Exactly . And that's why the Higgs and the Conservatives now refuse to answer to that " manufactured news " outlet .
Lou Bell
Reply to David Amos
Sure is . The usual LW insider .
David Amos
Reply to Donald LeBlanc
Mr Outhouse should agree that the bus speaks volumes
Shawn Tabor
I think that A I is going eliminate all this,
plus the courts, and even more. It sound ridiculous, but its getting
smarter and smarter. Just the tip of Earth ( Iceburg ). Everyone has an
opinion on what and how things are to be accomplished. Usually it is to
some human or humans benefit. A I is going to give a very good and
informative answer to all sorts of Matters that need addressing. Not
sure if that advice will be used. A lot of white collar work will be the
things of the past, thats the scary part. What will we do after that.
We all want more accountability and better taxation. Interesting but
also maybe unsettling. Doing the same thing over and over, and expecting
a different outcome does not seem to be working out. Taxes and death,
bring it on. Yee Haa. Have a great safe and happy day.
David Amos
Reply to Shawn Tabor
Welcome back to the circus Too bad you refused to sign my nomination last time I ran EH?
Harvey York
Reply to David Amos
Refused to sign your nomination? Sounds like a man with common sense to me
David Amos
Content Deactivated
Reply to Harvey York
So says the closet cop
David Amos
Content Deactivated
Reply to Harvey York
This government won't be happy until every Canadian is lined up at a soup kitchen. smh
Jack Straw
Does anyone really think Higgs cares ?
Clive Gibbons
Reply to Jack Straw
He cares. About himself and his masters.
David Amos
Reply to Clive Gibbons
True
Alison Jackson
Well the bus with the election decals kind of says it all doesn't it?
David Amos
Reply to Alison Jackson
C'est Vrai
Keith McLellan
I wish Higgs would resign immediately and call
an election for the good of the people of NB. He is no longer
accomplishing anything of benefit to this province. In fact he is
driving honest hard working people to the edge of financial ruin with
his penny pinching policies, accumulating obscene budget surpluses while
letting our healthcare system collapse before our very eyes. What a
dreadful leader Higgs has become.
David Amos
Reply to Keith McLellan
I second that emotion
Kyle Woodman
Another failure by the Higgs Faytene coalition
Rosco holt
Reply to Kyle Woodman
And the list of failure will continue to grow.
David Amos
Reply to Kyle Woodman
Amen
Bobby Richards
Higgs is fiscally tight when it comes to not
spending money for the public but doesn't mind spending the money when
it benefits him directly.
Rosco holt
Reply to Bobby Richards
Him or his masters.
David Amos
Reply to Bobby Richards
It obvious that lots of folks agree
Robert Brannen
One and three-quarters of a million dollars,
which could have been put toward the betterment of the conditions under
which the citizens of New Brunswick live, gone in smoke and mirrors.
Deborah Reddon
Reply to Robert Brannen
Yep and that doesn't count the couple million
we paid for Higgs when he shot his mouth off and fired a health
professional without reason. Nor does it take in the million plus
dollars spent to pay a legal suit to a Doctor who Higgs wrongly accused
of spreading Covid. There's so many more times Higgs has taken our tax
dollars and thrown them around like monopoly money. Shame Shame Blaine
Higgs
Donald LeBlanc
Reply to Deborah Reddon
Let’s not forget all the other lawsuits, First
Nations, Unions, Education Policies, a Constitutional Challenge on the
Property Assessment System, Democracy questions, probably many we don’t
know about.
Deborah Reddon
Reply to Donald LeBlanc
Donald it's much worse than anyone expected.
The Globe and Mail just did an expose on nursing costs across Canada.
NB pays almost the lowest hourly rate for nurses in all of Canada.
However, Higgs and company have signed contracts for outsourcing of
nurses. Those contracts for temporary nurses provide hourly wages of up
to $306/hour. Yes, 6x's the cost of what hiring a public servant would
be. It just came out in the G&M this afternoon's electronic
version so should be in the printed version tomorrow. By far the
largest contracting for nursing care in all of Canada.
David Amos
Content Deactivated
Reply to Donald LeBlanc
Do you know about all the lawsuits filed against Trudeau et al this week?
rick haars
Stories being rerun due to layoffs?
David Amos
Reply to rick haars
No doubt
AL BANNISTOR
Content Deactivated
heavy handed moderation doesnt serve the public interest
Cathy Watson
Content Deactivated
Reply toAL BANNISTOR
...yet this got posted?
G. Timothy Walton
Reply toAL BANNISTOR
You can thank some of the more... devoted political celebrity followers for its need.
David Amos
Reply toAL BANNISTOR
I concur
David Amos
Content Deactivated
Reply to Cathy Watson
Ask yourself what you could not read
AL BANNISTOR
sorry not sorry
David Amos
Reply toAL BANNISTOR
Nor I
JOhn D Bond
Why should this be a surprise to anyone. Higgs is only
concerned with Higgs. That there are fixed election dates are
meaningless when he apparently can decide at any time it serves His
purpose ( not the electorates) that an election will happen.
I hope the good folks of NB are keeping a list of all of his questionable actions.
AL BANNISTOR
Reply to JOhn D Bond
people are blind...the usual followers will
mark the ballot no matter what....and the same habit exists for either
party....its the political hamster wheel cause there is no viable
alternative
Jack Bell
Reply toAL BANNISTOR
You have 3 choices, vote for the red trash, vote for the blue trash, or throw your vote away.
valmond landry
Reply to JOhn D Bond
we don't need a list anybody with a bit of you
know what, would remember on voting day , the proof is in the pudding .
just have to look at him with his glass of i don't know what .
Alison Jackson
Reply to JOhn D Bond
Jack, deleting my post doesn't solve anything. Don't be like Lou.
AL BANNISTOR
Reply toJack Bell
its all just throwing your vote away!!
David Amos
Reply toJack Bell
So you say
David Amos
Reply to Alison Jackson
Good luck with that
Michel Pelletier
I am tires of hearing about higgs, and Ernie ect....
David Amos
Reply to Michel Pelletier
Me too
Eugene Peabody
Higgs dose not mind spending government money if it benefits him.
Poffenroth
referred to a photo of a Higgs election bus last fall as proof that the
premier was serious about a possible election call. (Submitted by Charles Doucet)
Liberal
Marco LeBlanc asked Poffenroth about the communication between her
office and the premier's as Elections New Brunswick prepared for a
possible early election. (Sam Farley/CBC)
Higgs speculated in September about calling an early election and didn't end the speculation until early November. (Ed Hunter/CBC)
Progressive Conservative MLA Jeff Carr agreed Poffenroth was put in a difficult position. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
Green
Leader David Coon said he wants to see legislation that requires
advanced warning for any early elections to ensure Elections New
Brunswick has enough time to prepare. (Sam Farley/CBC)
No comments:
Post a Comment