8.17.2012

democracy 24/7: citizens vs cons gets a court date

In case you haven't heard, a date has been set in Federal Court for hearings on the Conservative Party's vote suppression during the 2011 federal election. The hearing will begin on December 10.

The Cons have done everything in their power to scuttle this case, putting forth motion after motion to have evidence - and the entire case - thrown out. They've stalled and sidetracked and invented obstacles, but the court have taken seriously this threat to democracy. So on December 10, the citizens represented by the Council of Canadians will begin to be heard in federal court.

The most recent Conservative roadblock was a motion to require each side to put up a $250,000 security deposit against the other side's legal costs. (Meaning, the losing party will pay the other party's legal fees, and this $250,000 is proof that they can do so.) This crazy motion will be heard in about a month, on September 18.

The Council of Canadians is funding this challenge through donations from ordinary Canadian citizens: the Democracy 24-7 Legal Fund. You can donate online, or by phone or mail: information about how to donate is here. So far they've raised $200,000 of the $240,000 needed.

It's important when we talk and write about this, we call it what it is: vote suppression and election fraud. Despite what the mainstream media insists, this is not a "robocall scandal". Real people, employed by the Conservative Party of Canada or one of their subcontractors, were attempting to confuse voters and prevent them from voting. Period.

To stay updated, go to Democracy 24/7. On Twitter, it's #Democracy247.

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