Audit of the Performance of the Duties and Functions of Elections Officials

The Chief Electoral Officer of Canada (CEOC), an agent of Parliament, exercises general direction and supervision over the conduct of elections and referendums at the federal level. The CEOC heads the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, commonly known as Elections Canada.The Canada Elections Act (CEA) requires that an independent audit take place for each federal general election and by-election to determine whether election officers properly exercised the powers conferred on them and performed specific duties on all days of advance polling and on polling day.Requirement Elections Canada requires professional auditing services related to the planning, execution and reporting phases of an Electoral Event as well as ad hoc audits based on the following parameters:a demographically representative audit aggregated nationally for general elections;a demographically representative audit aggregated on a per Electoral District specific basis for a single by-election; and a demographically representative audit aggregated collectively when coinciding multiple by-elections fall on the same election day. A demographically representative sample considers the following criteria: age, education, gender, geography, ethnicity, income, language, marital status and raceThe Contractor must have a national presence, in line with the requirement to complete demographically representative audits.SecurityMinimum corporate security required: DOS - ReliabilityMinimum resource security required: Reliability statusPeriod of the Contract (a) The contract period is from the Effective Date of the Contract to after the 47th General Election or March 31, 2028 whichever comes first.(b) The bidder grants to Elections Canada the irrevocable option to extend the period of the Contract by 2 additional period(s) under the same terms and conditions. As follows;Option period 1 – after GE 47 or April 1, 2028 to GE 48 whichever comes first (including By-elections in between)Option period 2 – after GE 48 or April 1, 2029 to GE 49 whichever comes first (including By-elections in between)Submission of ProposalsThis Request for Proposal allows bidders to use the epost Connect service provided by Canada Post Corporation to transmit their proposals electronically. For further information, bidders must refer to Part 2 – Bidder Instructions, and Part 3 – Proposal Preparation Instructions of the Request for Proposal document.Proposals are to be addressed to the attention of the Contracting Authority and delivered, sealed, to the Proposal Receiving Unit on or before the bid closing date and time indicated on the front page of the Request for Proposal.For sending packages by courier or for dropping off, please note that the Proposal Receiving Unit at the Business Centre is open Mondays to Fridays from 8:00 to 12:00 and from 13:00 to 16:00 (Gatineau, Quebec time).Bids sent via email or facsimile will not be accepted.Documents may be submitted in either official language of Canada.Elections Canada retains the right to negotiate with suppliers on any procurement.Selection MethodologyCompetitive Procurement Strategy: Highest combined rating of technical merit and priceEnquiriesAll enquiries and other communication with Elections Canada personnel are to be directed ONLY to the Contracting Authority. The Contracting Authority will be the bidder’s primary contact. Bidders who contact anyone other than the Contracting Authority may be disqualified.All enquiries must be submitted in writing to proposal@elections.ca no later than the deadline indicated in the Request for Proposal. Enquiries received after that time may not be answered.Interested parties wishing to obtain the solicitation documents for this Request for Proposal must do so through https://buyandsell.gc.ca/procurement-data/tenders. The documents downloaded through this site take precedence over any copies that may also be made available.Further information about Elections Canada may be obtained at elections.ca.DebriefingsOnce the successful bidder has been announced, bidders may request a debriefing on the results of the Request for Proposal process. Bidders should make the request to the Contracting Authority as per the terms of the Request for Proposal. The debriefing may be in writing, by telephone or in person.