Ottawa, Canada – The Digital Governance Standards Institute (DGSI) is initiating the Periodic Maintenance of the National Standard of Canada CAN/DGSI 111-1, Online Voting – Part 1: Implementation of Online Voting in Canadian Municipal Elections.
This scheduled review ensures the standard continues to reflect current best practices, evolving technologies, and the expectations of municipalities, election administrators, and voters across Canada. As online voting adoption grows, maintaining strong and up-to-date governance standards is essential to safeguarding electoral integrity, accessibility, security, and public trust.
About CAN/DGSI 111-1
CAN/DGSI 111-1 provides municipalities with guidance on the implementation, technical readiness, operational planning, and governance required for the use of online voting in local elections. The standard addresses key areas including:
- Security thresholds for protecting voting data in transit and at rest
- Identity proofing and authentication processes
- Formal verification, logic and accuracy testing, and auditability
- Staffing, personnel, risk assessment, and system documentation
- Ballot design, accessibility requirements, and usability
- Protocols to ensure secrecy, anonymity, and integrity of the vote
- Network capacity, contingency planning, and incident response
This National Standard of Canada supports municipalities in delivering secure, accountable, and trustworthy online voting experiences for residents.
Why Periodic Maintenance Matters
Periodic Maintenance ensures that national standards evolve in step with:
- Advances in election technology
- New cybersecurity risks
- Lessons learned from municipal online voting deployments
- Shifts in public expectations for transparency and accountability
- Regulatory changes and policy developments across Canada
Through this process, DGSI engages with experts, municipalities, vendors, and the public to confirm the standard’s continued relevance or identify areas requiring revision or enhancement.
Call for Participation
DGSI invites municipal officials, election administrators, cybersecurity experts, technologists, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders to participate in the maintenance review of CAN/DGSI 111-1.
Individuals or organizations interested can provide their comments via CAN/DGSI 111-1.
About the Digital Governance Standards Institute (DGSI)
The Digital Governance Standards Institute develops digital technology governance standards fit for global use. The Institute works with experts, as well as national and global partners and the public to develop national standards that reduce risk to Canadians and Canadian organizations adopting and using innovative digital technologies in today’s digital economy. The Institute is an independent division of the Digital Governance Council. To learn more about the organization and its initiatives, visit www.dgc-cgn.org or contact info@dgc-cgn.org.