Survey worker nudges some residents of Manitoba Aboriginal nursing home: report

Hiring a nun to conduct mobile voting polls at an Aboriginal seniors' center during Manitoba's provincial election did not violate any laws, an investigation by the Manitoba Provincial Electoral Commission has found.

Still, Bill Bowles admits it's tough for residents at the KeKiNan center in northeast Winnipeg, many of whom are residential school survivors.

“Some of the KeKiNan residents were clearly triggered by Sister B's presence and caused them to relive the traumas of their youth. “It is also clear that Sister B intended no harm and had reason to believe she would welcome him based on her previous visit,” Bowles wrote in his Feb. 6 decision.

The investigation began after representatives of the nursing home complained to the Elections Manitoba agency, which oversees the provincial election, in October about the decision to send the nun to the home to canvass votes.

A female nun wears a religious habit, a black and/or white dress, and a headdress.

The scene left a number of residents “very upset” and the nursing home wanted to make sure it wouldn't happen again, the statement said.

An Elections Manitoba official responded to the complainant by email and said he was ready to do better in the future.

KeKiNan staff did not think the response was sufficient, the report said, and escalated their concerns by writing to the chief electoral officer as well as local groups and the provincial government.

“It was a very painful and damaging experience for many of us. Over the past few days, we've shared stories of how we've been traumatized and re-injured by this experience,” the staff wrote in the letter.

“One man said he wanted to slap a nun involuntarily … one elder was taken back in 1965 and raised his wrist to show the scars left by the nun's cane.”

Representatives from the nursing home later met with the Chief Elector in a healing circle and asked for a proper and complete explanation. They also said the nun had disguised herself during orientation by wearing street clothes and questioned whether she was a nun at all, the report said.

This prompted Bowles' investigation.

Investigators met with representatives and residents of the KeKiNan Center in November to determine whether the Election Law had been violated.

Residents told investigators they were not angry with the nun, but with her representative.

Investigators also met with the nun, identified in the report as Sister B. He told them that he had worked in previous elections to help the community and earn extra money. On these occasions, he said, he always performed his routine without difficulty.

He said he wore his habit on orientation day and was chosen to go to KeKiNan because he was one of the few workers who could drive.

The report said the nun knew it was a local nursing home and didn't think her habit would offend anyone there. He said that he had been with the residents of the house before and had a positive relationship with them.

On election day, he had a good relationship with the residents, he said. “I believed everything went well that day.”

The nun gave investigators a copy of her vows to prove she was a nun.

Bowles said that after meeting with all the participants, he believed everyone was telling the truth as they understood it.

“It's not that anyone committed an election violation,” he wrote.

Elections Manitoba is committed to ensuring the participation of culturally appropriate voting officials in future elections.