Kanesatake election legit, says electoral officer

Hamilton Spectator

16-05-2025

The chief electoral officer selected to oversee the upcoming Mohawk Council of Kanesatake (MCK) election acknowledged a contradiction in the electoral code but confirmed he believes it is legitimate to abide by a four-year term.
'As far as my position goes, I wouldn't be taking the appointment if I wasn't comfortable with proceeding despite the fact that one provision is not being maintained on the timing,' said Graeme Drew, who is a certified electoral officer with experience managing around 80 elections and other votes for Indigenous communities since 2014.
The provision he refers to is the Kanesatake Custom Electoral Code's mandated election date of the second Saturday in June, which equates to June 14 this year. However, the code also defines a term as four years, and the previous election was held on July 31, 2021; at the time, the delay was attributed largely to complications owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The MCK has said Council will be dissolved July 31 ahead of an August 2 election.
The timing is a crucial question, not least because the code dictates that only a chief who has completed a full term is eligible to run for grand chief.
According to Drew, such discrepancies are not unique to the community's code.
'This is not all that uncommon, quite honestly,' said Drew. 'There will be times when there are contradictory rules within an election code. I get asked quite often to review and critique and edit and write sections of codes for nations. When I do that, I try to ensure the dates for the election itself are not so prescriptive that it ties the hands of the electoral officer and the administration.'
He said he always provides recommendations for future elections, and adjusting the language around the election date will likely be included in his advice.
'In the case of this here, the term of office is really important in terms of the leadership was elected for four years, and that four years will expire just around the time of when the election date will be,' he said. 'One argument can be made that they earned that right for the four-year term, and another argument can be made that it should have started earlier to make sure the June election date is achieved.'
By the time the request for proposals went out, Drew added, it was for all intents and purposes impossible for a June 14 date to be met.
'By then it was too late,' he said. He suggested it would have been a good idea to amend the code since the last election to provide clarity for this year's contest.
Amanda Simon, who has announced plans to run in the upcoming election, has been an indefatigable voice in demanding the June election date be met.
'At this point, it is too late to have any other date without breaching the timelines in the code anyway,' said Simon when informed that the electoral officer had weighed in on the election's legitimacy.
'I guess the quorum stacked their deck with lawyers giving their blessing, and now their BC chief electoral officer,' she added, a reference to Drew being based in British Columbia.
MCK chief Serge Otsi Simon said Drew was selected for his experience.
'He's been around for quite some time. He has an impressive resume,' said Serge.
'The guy, I think he's very qualified because he also has a background in conflict resolution. I think for this election, we're going to need someone with that kind of background.'
Drew will be travelling to Kanesatake next week, where he will meet with Council and MCK staff as he gets started on the task of administering the election.
'I have to earn some respect and trust with the incumbents and previous leaders and people that are running, and hopefully they'll see my intention is good in terms of trying to ensure that it's a fair election,' said Drew.
He will be at arm's length from Council during the process, he said, communicating with staff rather than elected officials as he embarks on fulfilling his role, and he is committed to administering the election according to Kanesatake's electoral code, he said.
'I'm like the referee, and that's my rulebook,' he said.
Drew suggested he is in favour of the plan for online voting to be used even though it is not included in the methods outlined in the electoral code, calling it an additive method – not taking away any established forms – with many advantages, especially for those who don't live on the territory.
'It's a very effective way to ensure as many people can vote as possible,' he said.
Key dates pertaining to the election, such as those pertaining to advance voting and the nomination process, will soon be finalized, said Drew.
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Marcus Bankuti, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter