Heather Wright/The Independent

Petrolia’s 2026 municipal election will be all online.

Council agreed to the move March 24.

Mandi Pearson, director of legal services for the town, says the 2022 election had two options, online voting or heading to town hall to cast a paper ballot.

Mayor Brad Loosley championed the idea saying many elderly people preferred the paper ballot.

In a report to council, Pearson said the paper ballot option didn’t increase voter turnout in 2022. In 2018, the first year of electronic voting, Pearson said the municipality, with a hotly-contested vote, had 53.5 per cent voter turn out. That was up 16.5 per cent over 2014.

But in 2022, when the paper ballot option was provided, voter turnout was 45.5 per cent – an eight per cent decrease from the 2018 election.

Pearson says people who still want to vote in person can come to town hall and vote electronically.

Voting at local nursing homes will also be electronic as the Ipads used for the process are portable.

Pearson added the town uses a reputable firm to make sure security isn’t compromised. Voters get a voting card in the mail with their own PIN to cast their ballot. They’ll have to input their date of birth before voting for added security.

The town will now work with a number of Lambton municipalities to hire a firm to run the process for the October 2026 vote.