Too Few Voters Show Up For Canoe Lake Referendum

Too Few Voters Show Up For Canoe Lake Referendum

Thursday, November 05, 2009 at 12:45

A northern chief is laying some of the blame for poor voter turnout at his band’s recent referendum on fears about the H1N1 virus.

Chief Guy Lariviere says the Canoe Lake Cree Nation needed 300-plus band members to take part in a vote yesterday on their proposed custom election act, in order for Indian Affairs to accept the outcome.

Instead, only around 200 voters showed up — and Lariviere thinks that people’s uncertainty about the risk of getting the so-called “swine flu” at a public event may be partly to blame.

The First Nation’s school has been temporarily shut down this week, as officials ready the building for immunizations — but there has been no communitty outbreak of the flu.

Lariviere says a new referendum date will be scheduled once he has a chance to meet with band officials later this week.