Safeguarding Canada's elections is important. That is why we are taking steps to respond to foreign interference, foreign information manipulation, and other threats to our democratic processes.
Today, the Government of Canada published the Retrospective Report on the implementation of the Critical Election Incident Public Protocol (CEIPP) during Canada's 45th General Election (GE45), and the Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections Task Force's Threats to Canada's 45th General Election after-action report.
The reports show that Canada had robust measures in place to protect GE45. While foreign attempts to undermine the election were detected, these efforts were judged not to have affected the integrity of the election, or the ability of Canadians to exercise their right to choose their democratic representatives freely and fairly.
The reports provide insights into the Government of Canada's deliberations and decision-making during the caretaker period regarding incidents that could have threatened Canada's ability to hold a free and fair election. It also provides:
- A detailed look at what the Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections Task Force (SITE TF) expected to see in the lead-up to GE45, its observations of threat activities during the election, and actions it undertook to safeguard the election at the direction of the CEIPP Panel.
- A review of the new measures undertaken during this election, including weekly public briefings, to keep Canadians informed of possible foreign interference.
- Lessons learned and recommendations to continue to bolster Canada's measures to protect our democratic institutions.
Together, these reports show the government's actions to have a more coordinated and effective approach to monitoring, and responding to threats to elections, including foreign interference during the election period. They also bring to light incidents of foreign interference observed during GE45 to raise awareness of these issues and enhance Canada's resilience against these types of threats in the future.
