Québec City, April 25, 2003 –– Mr. Marcel Blanchet, Québec’s Chief Electoral Officer, wishes to inform persons who are qualified electors in the electoral division of Champlain and who are currently residing outside Québec that they may vote by correspondence in the new election to be held in the electoral division on May 20,2003. The new election has been made necessary by a tie vote following a judicial recount.

This measure applies to electors who have left Québec temporarily within the last two years and who intend to return, and whose domicile is located in the electoral division in question. To vote by correspondence, they must complete the registration form and return it to the Chief Electoral Officer by May 1, 2003. Eligible electors will then receive a ballot paper, sent to their address outside Québec, along with the information they need to vote.

Please note that electors in the electoral division of Champlain who were registered to vote by correspondence for the general elections of April 14 must re-register in order to benefit from this measure.

The registration form may be downloaded from the Chief Electoral Officer’s website at www.electionsquebec.qc.ca, and may also be obtained by contacting the Chief Electoral Officer’s Information Centre:

By telephone:

(418) 528-0422

1 888 ÉLECTION (1 888 353-2846)

(toll-free in Canada and the United States)

Telecommunications device (TDD) for the deaf or hearing impaired:

(418) 646-0644 or

1 800 537-0644 (toll-free in Québec)

By fax:

(418) 643-3829

The two-year limit on absences does not apply to electors who are posted outside Québec to a position with the Gouvernement du Québec, the Government of Canada or an international organization mentioned in the Act, nor does it apply to the spouse or dependents of an elector, provided they are themselves electors.

Electors posted outside Québec must provide proof of their posting in addition to the other supporting documents required on the registration form.

Mr. Blanchet asks anyone with relatives or friends who have been temporarily absent from Québec for two years or less and who, at the time of their departure, were domiciled in the electoral division of Champlain, to inform the people in question that they may vote by correspondence on May 20.