Articles by author: Brock University

• How public input on Canada’s online voting standard can impact future elections

  Thursday, February 26, 2026 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE — February 26, 2026 — R0022 

  Before Ontarians cast their ballots in this fall’s municipal elections, they have the chance to provide feedback that could help shape elections into the future.  

  Canada’s first national standard for online municipal voting is open for input from the public and stakeholders involved in municipal elections — and Brock University Associate Professor of Political Science Nicole Goodman is encouraging participation.

  Initially proposed to the Digital Governance Standard Institute (DGSI) by Goodman and Aleksander Essex of Western University, Online Voting – Part 1: Implementation of Online Voting in Canadian Municipal Elections was published as a National Standard of Canada in December 2024. 

  The document, which outlines technical design requirements for online voting services and best practices for the implementation of online voting in Canadian municipal elections, is accepting public comment through the DGSI website until Tuesday, March 3. 

  Goodman says the voluntary standard sets the stage for municipal elections in the digital age, “marking an important step toward creating a cross-country regulatory framework for election technologies in Canada.”

  “Having input from the public and relevant stakeholders is important as they have practical knowledge about what works and what does not, as well as insights into new trends in the online voting space or municipal sector,” she says. “This ensures the standard reflects technical innovations while also considering implementation challenges and compatibility issues. It can also help anticipate new risks or issues that need to be addressed by the standard to support local communities to deliver safer digital elections.”

  
  The number of Ontario municipalities using digital technologies has climbed steadily since 2003.

  “Ontario’s elections are the most digitally enabled elections in Canada, with 222 municipalities having used online voting in 2022,” Goodman says. “I expect that we will see record levels of online voting use in the 2026 municipal elections this fall, making the standard especially important.”

  As elections continue to digitize, Goodman says maintaining electoral integrity through the regulation of digital technologies in elections is critical.

  “For a time, Canada was the only country in the world to use election technologies without regulations, even though Canada has one of the highest rates of use,” she says. “We’ve also had several technical incidents occur as technologies are adopted, emphasizing the importance of putting standards in place.” 

  Goodman’s research has shown that technical difficulties, such as those seen in Ontario’s 2018 municipal elections, can negatively affect attitudes about casting an online vote. 

  “You have to think about the impact on public perception when residents see their municipality declaring a state of emergency because of something to do with online voting,” she says. “When introducing technology to help with democracy — to improve voter turnout, accessibility and convenience — if we’re not putting in place the proper protocols, we could be doing the exact opposite.”

  The voluntary standard applies only to municipal elections, so it will not be a factor in federal or provincial elections. But Goodman believes it could be built upon for use in higher levels of government.

  The Northwest Territories, for example, wrote their own regulation for online voting informed by DGSI’s municipal process, she says. 

  Goodman and Essex discuss how standards can be adapted to other levels of government and identify additional regulatory measures that could support digital elections at higher levels of government in “The Complex Challenges of Regulating Election Technologies in Canada.” The chapter will appear in the forthcoming Regulating Digital, which Goodman co-edited with Helen Hayes of McGill University for University of Toronto Press. 

  View the online voting standard on the DGSI website and select the “Provide Comment” tab to leave feedback.

  
  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  *Sarah Ackles, Communications Specialist, Brock University [email protected] or 289-241-5483 

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  Categories: Media releases

• Say you’ll remember me: Wartime love letters revived in A (Taylor) Swift History course

  Wednesday, February 25, 2026 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE — February 25, 2026 — R0021

  What do Brock University’s Archives and Special Collections have to do with Taylor Swift?  

  More than most people might think, says Elizabeth Vlossak.  

  The Associate Professor of History will reveal the connections this spring when students in her A Swift History course study letters that Brock founder Arthur Schmon received from his fiancée, Celeste. Preserved in Brock’s collection, the letters were written while Arthur was fighting in the trenches of Northern France during the First World War. 

  Vlossak — Brock’s 20th-century Europe and world history expert and resident “Swiftie” — uses the music, career and fandom of Taylor Swift to explore historical thinking and research methods alongside significant, and lesser-known, historical figures, events and cultural developments. 

  In the course, the Schmons’ love story and Swift’s song “The Great War” provide the backdrop for a lesson uncovering conflicting interpretations of the causes and consequences of the war and its impact on memorial culture.  

  “Celeste Schmon’s letters are probably not what most students expect to read in a lesson on the First World War, yet they invite us to think more critically about including as many different voices as we can when we study the past,” Vlossak says. 

  While A Swift History focuses largely on the 20th century, the innovative course also delves into the histories of witch hunts, New York City, showgirls and cats — topics that Vlossak suspects would appeal to Taylor Swift and her fans. 

  “My goal is to help students understand what history is and to learn how historians study and make sense of the past, but I also want students to be moved by the lives and experiences of those who came before us and to recognize our common humanity,” she says.  

  For Vlossak, this includes learning how to read and analyze a wide variety of primary sources, including archival documents like Celeste’s letters, material culture and oral history. Students will be asked to reflect on how sources shape historical narratives and how to make history more inclusive. 

  “We must include as many voices as we can when we study the past,” she says. “Our choice of sources matters deeply.”

  This year, Vlossak will also dive into political protest music, connecting the cultural impact of music from the early 20th century — from the 1960s with the anti-Vietnam War protests and Civil Rights movement — to today.

  “We will learn about other influential musicians to build base knowledge of these historical actors and events and broaden our understanding of cultural production,” she says.  

  Students will explore the ways that historical knowledge is communicated in books and articles, museums and memorials, and podcasts and social media. 

  Each weekly lesson and assignment is inspired by Swift — whether a song, an album or a meme — and students will have plenty of opportunities to analyze Swift’s music, music videos and interviews, and read about her life and career. 

  Vlossak has even adopted some of the techniques Swift famously uses to engage and communicate with her audience, such as incorporating secret messages, often called Easter eggs, into the weekly lessons.  

  Whether students have never studied history or are fourth-year History majors, they’ve never heard a Swift song or are lifelong Swifties, Vlossak says A Swift History has something for everyone.  

  More information on Brock’s Spring/Summer course offerings, including A Swift History, is available at brocku.ca/springsummer 

  Registration opens Tuesday, March 3.

  
  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews: 

  *Sarah Ackles, Communications Specialist, Brock University [email protected] or 289-241-5483

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  Categories: Media releases