During their April 16 meeting, the Pelham Town Council approved the addition of an online voting option which will be made available to residents for the upcoming 2026 municipal and school board elections.
A staff report prepared by Acting Town Clerk Sarah Leach states that Pelham would become the fifth lower-tier municipality in Niagara to utilize online voting. The Towns of Grimsby, Lincoln, West Lincoln, and City of Thorold all implemented online voting during the most recent 2022 local election cycle.
Council’s decision in favour of online voting came following the release of the staff report, which recommended online voting be offered alongside the traditional in-person ballot option.
It was also recommended that online voting be implemented as an advance voting option only, with all election day voting taking place in-person.
The report made use of results from a community survey completed during the 4th quarter of 2024 in which residents were polled on their preferred voting options. Of 116 respondents, 78 stated that they would choose online voting both over in-person (62), as well as postal voting (23).
The report also outlines that an online system presents the most fiscally efficient option for voting, costing a total of $35,390.00, compared to $84,932.06 for postal voting and $125,875.50 for in-person voting.
At the April 16 meeting, Pelham Mayor Marvin Junkin asked Leach to confirm a few details with respect to the proposed online voting option, including that “everyone in the town will be getting a specific code,” which would be sent to them, “whether it be four or six weeks” ahead of time, and would allow them to “get to the town voting website.”
Leach responded that every eligible voter would receive “a voter notification card,” and “this election, that voter notification card would be inclusive of an online voting code, and should they choose to pursue that option, it would be there, up to them, and available.”
“Or they can just ignore that and go on the voting day to the MCC?” Junkin replied.
“Absolutely correct,” said Leach.
The next Pelham municipal and school board elections will take place on Monday, Oct. 26, 2026.
Those interested in reading the full staff report can do so at the following link:
Nick Redekop completed his Honours Bachelor of Arts Degree in Labour Studies at Brock University. He has previously served in municipal and federal politics. In his free time, Nick enjoys following sports, taking part in outdoor activities, and reading biographies. Nick resides in Niagara Falls
