Quebec seeks to appeal mandatory English documentation for voters

Quebec's attorney general asked a Court of Appeal judge for permission to challenge rulings that forced Élections Québec to mail bilingual voting reminder cards, after the agency announced in September it would provide French-only documentation under the province's 2022 language law. The Superior Court had sided with Anglophone rights activist Geoffrey Chambers, who argued the French-only policy violated the constitutional right to vote.

The hearing happened on election day itself, with Chambers' lawyer arguing the appeal request is moot since the injunctions expire at midnight when the election ends. The attorney general countered that the lower court judges overstepped by treating the right to vote as covering language rights, which it says are a separate legal category.

Chambers says the broader problem extends beyond the documentation dispute, including poll workers instructed to operate only in French, and calls the government's approach effective voter suppression. A decision on whether the appeal can proceed is expected within the week.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.