The future of voting in Cochrane could change after councillors debated a proposal to drop paper ballots in favour of telephone and internet voting for the 2026 municipal election.

The recommendation, presented at the Sept. 23 council meeting by municipal clerk Cassandra Child, would see residents cast their ballots electronically for the Oct. 26, 2026, municipal and school board election.

Child told councillors electronic voting has steadily gained traction across Ontario. She noted in 2022, 52 percent of municipalities introduced telephone and internet voting.

“I’m suggesting we don’t have traditional paper ballots, that we only have telephone and internet,” she said.

Coun. Sylvie Charron-Lemieux drew on her own experience in the municipality of Greenstone, which adopted electronic-o

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