Andrew Scheer, the Tory leader, Justin Trudeau, the prime minister, and Jagmeet Singh, the leader of the NDP,(seen clockwise from the upper left), might face their respective futures a week later than originally scheduled.(Canadian Press photos)

Date of fall federal election comes into question

The date of Canada’s federal election this fall is suddenly up in the air.

It is set for Oct. 21.

But on Tuesday, Federal Court Justice Ann Marie McDonald ordered Chief Electoral Officer Stephane Perrault to revisit his decision not to change the date even though it coincides with a Jewish holiday

The holiday, Shemini Atzeret, begins Oct. 20 and ends Oct. 22.

Orthodox Jewish candidate Chani Aryeh-Bain, left, shown here with Conservative Party Leader Andrew Scheer, is running for the Conservatives in the Toronto area riding of Eglinton-Lawrence. (Chani Aryeh-Bain/Facebook)

At a court hearing last week, Chani Aryeh-Bain, an Orthodox Jew who is running as the Conservative candidate in the Toronto-area riding of Eglinton-Lawrence, and Ira Walfish, an Orthodox Jewish political activist, said Perrault did not properly consider their rights under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Aryeh-Bain argued that because of the holiday observant Orthodox Jews must refrain from a number of activities–including voting and campaigning — and cannot ask others to work for them, adding that the scheduled date could negatively affect her vote because her riding has about 5,000 Orthodox Jewish voters.

In her judgement, Justice McDonald also noted that the Oct. 12 advance polling day conflicts with the Sabbath and the Oct. 14 advance polling day coincides with the festival of Sukkot, another Jewish holiday.

Following the judgement, Perrault responded.

Chief Electoral Officer of Canada Stephane Perrault, is seen on Parliament Hill in Ottawa in November 2018. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

“Elections Canada will act in a timely manner in accordance with the directions provided by the court,” he said in a statement.

“I will make public my final decision as soon as possible.

Michael Mostyn, chief executive officer of B’nai Brith Canada, called the decision “a massive victory for the Canadian Jewish community and the cause of human rights.”

“The right to vote and run for office is one of the most fundamental rights in Canadian society, and the court was right to find that Elections Canada must give them proper consideration,” he said in a statement.

According to the Canada Elections Act, Perrault has until Aug. 1 to make a date recommendation to cabinet to leave enough time for the election to be moved.

Aryeh-Bain and B’Nai Brith Canada proposed moving the election date to Oct. 28.

With files from CBC, CTV, Global, Huffington Post

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