Voters will choose from record-setting 48 names in Winnipeg South Centre federal byelection ballot

More names are on the ballot for the Winnipeg South Centre byelection next week than for any federal election in Canada's history.

A record-setting 48 individuals are running for office — 42 of which are part of a co-ordinated effort from the Longest Ballot Committee to protest the first-past-the-post voting system.

The federal Liberals abandoned their 2015 election pledge to reform the electoral system, and the Longest Ballot Committee don't want the government to forget about that promise.

"We mobilized candidates from across the country, from Grande Prairie to Rimouski, Pickle Lake to Surrey, the youngest 18 and the oldest 70, to stand in a single riding," the group said in a recent news release.

"Some call the longest ballot frivolous, inappropriate, or just ballot clutter. We must disagree. It takes courage to stand for election and at this time more than ever it is critically important that the demands for meaningful democratic reform be answered."

The vast majority of the Winnipeg South Centre hopefuls live outside the city, but not all.

Christopher Clacio, who campaigned for Winnipeg mayor in 2022 as an average citizen advocating for more engagement in the democratic process, said his views dovetail nicely with the Longest Ballot group. He said they approached him about running in the byelection.

Clacio said a new voting system could encourage more participation in democracy.

"I think the data shows that there is a disengaged audience and if you really want to change the dynamic in the way we run politics, you need a diverse set of candidates to run," said Clacio, who received the fewest votes among the 11 mayoral candidates.

The current system, in which the person with the most votes wins the seat, can distort voter preferences, as candidates can win the election despite getting less than half of the votes.

The Longest Ballot group would like some form of electoral reform, such as proportional representation, which political observers say would reduce the practice of strategic voting and more accurately reflect voters' views. All of the Longest Ballot candidates are running as independents, except for Sébastien CoRhino, the leader of the Rhinoceros Party. He also goes by the name of Sébastien Corriveau.

The actual process of getting 48 names on the ballot forced an amendment to the Canada Elections Act so all names could fit on the paper. The paper itself will be 50.7 cm in length and 30.5 cm wide.

Elections Canada said it has trained poll workers on a new method for folding the ballots to maintain the secrecy of the ballot. The federal agency is also expecting it'll take longer to count the ballots on election day.

Clacio acknowledged people may see the long list of candidates as a distraction.