Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

First of all, I'd like to thank the members of the committee for their invitation.

My remarks today are based on my experience as a professor of Canadian politics and electoral studies at the Université de Sherbrooke and, previously, at the University of Edinburgh, as well as an academic researcher working with institutions such as Elections Canada, Elections Québec and Elections Montréal.

Today, I'm going to focus on two points. First, I'm going to focus on the one-week postponement of the 2025 general election. Second, I'll briefly touch on the addition of advance polling days.

Regarding the election date, I understand that the bill moves the election back a week so as not to overlap with Divali, the Festival of Light. I don't think we should be closed to this kind of religious accommodation, but it's very delicate, particularly in terms of the state's principle of secularism. So we have to ask ourselves whether accommodation brings more democratic advantages than disadvantages. Unfortunately, in this case, I see at least two major problems caused directly by the postponement of the date.

First, the postponement of the Canadian general election will result in an overlap between that election and Quebec's municipal elections. The latter, scheduled for November 2, 2025, are very important, as millions of voters are expected to cast their ballots. With the postponement proposed by the bill, the two election campaigns will overlap almost perfectly. In fact, only five separate days would remain for the municipal campaign.

In addition, advance voting at the municipal level would literally take place during the end of the federal election campaign. This situation is highly problematic for several reasons. Firstly, it would create even more electoral fatigue, and Quebec municipal elections would essentially pay the price. Voter turnout there is already very low, at around 38% in the last election. Secondly, it would affect the organization of elections. For example, it would be much more difficult for institutions such as Elections Montréal, among others, to secure available premises for the proper conduct of voting, particularly advance polling, which would take place during the federal election. In other words, the current bill would likely adversely affect turnout in Quebec municipal elections.

The second reason why postponing the date of the 2025 general election is problematic, in my opinion, is that it would most likely fuel voters' political cynicism. Postponing the election date will almost certainly be interpreted as an opportunistic measure to preserve the personal interests of certain MPs from several political parties, who would obtain a House pension thanks to a few extra days of service. This measure risks damaging public confidence in democratic institutions.

The research I've conducted, notably with André Blais in our book The Motivation to Vote, shows that citizens' attitudes are fundamental to understanding their decision to vote or abstain. The problem here is that the measure proposed in the bill will undermine political confidence and fuel cynicism, and could, in the short, medium and long term, harm voter turnout, which is already problematic in Canada.

In summary, I consider that the decision to postpone the date of the 2025 general election has the potential to have very serious consequences for participation in Quebec municipal elections, for the organization of this poll and, more generally, for the democratic attitudes and public opinion of Canadians towards parliamentary institutions.

The big question now is: is accommodating those who will be celebrating the Festival of Light reasonable?

People celebrating Divali will have the opportunity to vote in advance for six days, since there are usually four and it is proposed to add two. There would therefore be six opportunities for advance voting, in addition to other measures in schools. Given my previous findings, considering the problems I mentioned, and remembering that there are measures to accommodate the fact that there is a religious holiday on October 20, my answer is unequivocal: the committee should not push back the date of the 2025 general election.

I now want to briefly address the addition of two days of advance voting. I don't see it as problematic, but it shouldn't be seen as a quick fix. My research shows that the vast majority of voters, over 78% of people, consider that voting is already either fairly easy or very easy. If they abstain from voting, therefore, it's not because they consider it difficult, but for other reasons. I mentioned democratic attitudes. So it's not clear to me how going from four to six days of advance voting will change anything if the goal is to increase voter turnout.

In conclusion, I would like to mention that amending the Canada Elections Act is a delicate exercise that should ideally enjoy a very broad consensus, broader in fact than other bills, for reasons that seem obvious to me. We can come back to this during the question period if you wish.

So those are the two points I wanted to mention today. Once again, thank you for your invitation and I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have.