/ Section 331 of the Canada Elections Act
If a Brit or American so much as Tweets an endorsement for NDP leader Tom Mulcair, they are breaking the law, says an obscure section of Canadian law.
Under the rarely enforced Section 331 of the Canada Elections Act, “no person who does not reside in Canada shall, during an election period, in any way induce electors to … vote or refrain from voting for a particular candidate.”
The law came up this week when a VICE interviewer asked the following question to world-renowned Indie band Arcade Fire, “in light of the upcoming election, what local or Canadian issues do you think are important?”
Frontman Win Butler, displaying an impressive knowledge of Canadian electoral law, declined to answer because it was “completely illegal.”
“I actually learned recently that, as an American citizen, I’m not allowed to endorse, as a public figure, a Canadian. If I were like … ‘I wish the NDP would win the election,’ that would be completely illegal for me to do,” he said.
National Post, Tristin Hopper: “Are you an American who endorses Tom Mulcair? Then you might be breaking the law.”