Documentation

Welcome to RidingDesk, the campaign management platform built specifically for Canadian political campaigns. Whether you are running a federal, provincial, or municipal campaign, RidingDesk provides the tools you need to organize your team, engage voters, and run an effective ground game across your riding.

To create your account, visit the signup page and enter your campaign details. You will need to specify your riding (electoral district), the level of government (federal, provincial, or municipal), and your role within the campaign. RidingDesk supports both English and French interfaces out of the box, so your entire team can work in their preferred official language. During onboarding, you will be guided through importing your voter list, inviting team members, and configuring your first canvassing routes.

Once your account is created, you can log in from any device. The platform is fully responsive and works on desktop browsers, tablets, and mobile phones. Campaign managers and field organizers can access the full suite of tools, while volunteers see a simplified interface tailored to their assigned tasks such as canvassing or phone banking.

The RidingDesk dashboard is your campaign command centre. At a glance you can see voter contact rates, volunteer activity, fundraising totals, canvassing progress by poll division, and upcoming events. The dashboard updates in real time as your team logs interactions in the field, so you always have an accurate picture of where your campaign stands.

The top section displays key performance indicators (KPIs) for the current campaign period: total doors knocked, calls made, voter IDs collected, lawn signs placed, and dollars raised. Below the KPIs you will find a map view of your riding, colour-coded by canvassing progress at the poll division level. Areas shaded green have been fully canvassed, yellow indicates partial coverage, and unvisited areas appear in grey.

The activity feed on the right side of the dashboard shows a chronological log of campaign actions: new volunteers signing up, canvassing shifts completed, donations received, and survey responses submitted. Campaign managers can filter this feed by activity type, team member, or date range to focus on the metrics that matter most during different phases of the campaign.

The voter database is the foundation of your campaign. RidingDesk supports importing the official Elections Canada voters list as well as provincial electoral rolls. Once imported, each voter record includes name, address, poll division, and demographic data. You can enrich these records over time with voter ID results, issue preferences, contact history, volunteer notes, and support scores generated by the platform's predictive modelling.

Use the powerful search and filter tools to segment your voter file by any combination of criteria: poll division, street, city, support level, contact status, age range, language preference, or custom tags your team has applied. Save frequently used filters as named segments for quick access. For example, you might create segments for “Strong Supporters in PD 42” or “Undecided Voters Not Yet Contacted” to drive targeted outreach.

RidingDesk also supports bulk operations on your voter data. Select a group of voters and assign them to a canvassing list, add them to a phone bank queue, tag them for a specific outreach campaign, or export them to CSV for use in external tools. All changes are fully audited so you can track who modified a record and when.

Door-to-door canvassing remains the most effective voter contact method in Canadian campaigns. RidingDesk makes it easy to plan canvassing operations by generating optimized walk lists based on poll divisions, street routes, and targeting criteria. Assign walk lists to volunteers, track their progress in real time on the campaign map, and collect voter ID data that flows directly back into your central database.

The canvassing module includes a route optimizer that minimizes walking distance while maximizing voter contacts. It accounts for apartment buildings, rural properties, and seasonal factors like daylight hours. Canvassers use the RidingDesk mobile app (available for iOS and Android) to view their walk list, navigate between doors using built-in maps, record voter responses using configurable scripts, and leave digital drop cards when no one is home.

After each canvassing shift, results are synced automatically. Campaign managers can review canvasser performance metrics such as doors per hour, voter ID rates, and support level distributions. The system also supports literature drop tracking so you know exactly which households received your campaign materials and which still need a visit.

RidingDesk is a Progressive Web App (PWA), which means your canvassers can install it directly on their phones without visiting an app store. To install, open RidingDesk in your mobile browser (Chrome on Android, Safari on iOS) and tap the “Add to Home Screen” prompt that appears automatically. The app icon will be added to your phone's home screen, providing a native app-like experience with full-screen mode, push notifications, and fast load times.

The mobile canvassing workflow is designed for real-world field conditions. Before heading out, a canvasser opens the Canvass page in the dashboard and downloads their assigned walk list for offline use. Once in the field, they can go door-to-door recording voter responses, support levels, and notes even without cell service. The app stores all interactions locally on the device and syncs them automatically when a network connection is restored. A sync status indicator in the app header shows whether all data is up to date or if there are pending interactions waiting to upload.

GPS navigation is built into the mobile canvassing experience. The app shows your current location on the walk list map and provides turn-by-turn navigation between doors. This is especially useful in unfamiliar neighbourhoods, rural areas with long driveways, or large apartment complexes. The pending interactions counter at the top of the screen lets canvassers know how many responses are queued locally and not yet synced to the server.

Phone banking is a critical tool for voter contact, especially during the writ period when time is limited. RidingDesk's built-in call centre module lets you create phone bank sessions, assign calling lists based on voter segments, and provide callers with customizable scripts in English or French. Volunteers can make calls directly through the browser-based dialer or log calls made from their own phones.

Each calling script is fully configurable with branching logic. If a voter says they are undecided, the script can prompt the caller to discuss specific issues. If they are a strong supporter, the script can pivot to asking about volunteering or lawn sign placement. All responses are recorded against the voter record in real time, and the system automatically advances to the next number when a call is completed.

Campaign managers can monitor active phone bank sessions from the call centre dashboard. See how many callers are active, calls completed per hour, average call duration, and voter ID results in aggregate. The system respects CRTC Do Not Call list regulations and automatically filters out numbers that have opted out of campaign contact.

The Campaigns module handles email and SMS outreach to voters, supporters, and volunteers. Create visually appealing email campaigns using the drag-and-drop template builder, or start from one of the pre-built templates designed for common campaign communications: fundraising asks, event invitations, policy announcements, and get-out-the-vote reminders.

Every campaign can be targeted to specific voter segments so your messaging is relevant. Send a fundraising appeal to past donors, a policy update to voters who expressed interest in a specific issue during canvassing, or an event invitation to volunteers in a particular part of the riding. The built-in A/B testing feature lets you test subject lines, send times, and content variations to optimize your outreach.

SMS campaigns are ideal for time-sensitive communications like event reminders and election day GOTV messages. RidingDesk handles opt-in management and CASL (Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation) compliance automatically. All messages include proper unsubscribe mechanisms, and the platform tracks delivery rates, open rates, click rates, and conversion metrics for every campaign you send.

Surveys help you understand what matters to voters in your riding. RidingDesk's survey builder lets you create questionnaires with multiple question types: multiple choice, rating scales, open-ended text, ranked preferences, and Net Promoter Score. Surveys can be deployed through email, SMS, your campaign website, or used as structured scripts during canvassing and phone banking.

Each survey response is linked to the voter record when possible, enriching your understanding of individual voters and the broader electorate. Use survey data to identify the top issues in your riding, tailor your candidate's messaging, and build segments of voters who care about specific policy areas. The results dashboard provides real-time aggregate analysis with charts and cross-tabulations.

Surveys support both official languages and can be set to display in the voter's preferred language automatically. You can also create bilingual surveys where respondents choose their language at the start. All survey data exports cleanly to CSV and integrates with the analytics module for deeper analysis.

The Survey Builder provides a drag-and-drop interface for creating custom surveys tailored to your campaign's needs. Four question types are supported: multiple choice (single or multi-select), rating scale (numeric or star-based), open-ended text response, and yes/no binary questions. Each question can be marked as required or optional, and you can add helper text to guide respondents. The builder includes a live preview so you can see exactly how the survey will appear to voters before publishing.

Once your survey is ready, share it through multiple channels. Generate a unique public link for social media and email campaigns, embed it directly on your campaign landing pages, or use it as a structured script during door-to-door canvassing and phone banking sessions. Each distribution channel is tracked separately so you can see which method generates the most responses.

The response analytics dashboard provides real-time insights as responses come in. View aggregate results with interactive charts for each question, filter responses by date range or respondent demographics, and export raw data to CSV for further analysis. Cross-tabulation reports let you compare how different voter segments answered specific questions, helping you identify which issues resonate with different parts of your riding.

RidingDesk provides a complete fundraising suite designed for Canadian political contribution regulations. Accept online donations through secure payment processing with automatic compliance checks against Elections Canada or provincial contribution limits. The system validates donor eligibility (Canadian citizens and permanent residents only for federal campaigns) and flags contributions that would exceed annual limits.

Every donation is tracked with full audit trail including donor name, address, amount, payment method, and timestamp. The platform automatically generates official tax receipts that comply with CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) requirements. For federal campaigns, donors receive receipts reflecting the generous Canadian political donation tax credit: 75% on the first $400, 50% on the next $350, and 33.3% on amounts above $750. Provincial receipt formats are configured based on your campaign's jurisdiction.

The fundraising module also tracks pledges, recurring donations, and in-kind contributions. Generate financial reports formatted for Elections Canada or your provincial elections authority filing requirements. At the end of your campaign, export all financial data in the format required by your official agent for the return of election expenses.

Election day (E-Day) is the culmination of your campaign, and RidingDesk provides a dedicated GOTV (Get Out The Vote) operations centre to maximize supporter turnout. The E-Day module integrates your voter ID data with real-time poll tracking to identify which of your supporters have voted and which still need a reminder. As scrutineers report voters who have cast ballots, the system updates automatically and triggers outreach to supporters who have not yet shown up.

RidingDesk uses live Server-Sent Events (SSE) streaming to deliver real-time data to the election day dashboard without requiring manual page refreshes. A pulsing LIVE indicator in the dashboard header confirms that the data stream is active and connected. As scrutineers log voter arrivals at polling stations, the numbers update instantly across all connected screens in your campaign war room. If the connection is temporarily lost, the system automatically reconnects and back-fills any missed updates.

The Observer Status Panel provides a centralized view of all your poll observers and scrutineers. See at a glance which polling stations are covered, which observers have checked in, and which stations need attention. Observers update their status directly from the mobile app, and the panel refreshes in real time via the SSE stream. Campaign managers can reassign observers on the fly if a station loses coverage.

GOTV real-time tracking shows supporter turnout progress as a percentage against your identified supporters in each poll division. The GOTV call and text queue automatically prioritizes supporters who have not yet voted, with frequency increasing as polls approach closing time. For advance voting days, the system tracks turnout across all advance poll locations. Campaign managers get a live dashboard with auto-refresh showing estimated turnout by poll division, projected results based on voter ID and turnout data, and alerts for any polling stations that lack scrutineer coverage.

Volunteers are the backbone of any Canadian campaign, and RidingDesk helps you recruit, organize, and retain your volunteer team. The volunteer roster tracks every person who has offered to help, including their contact information, availability, skills, language abilities, and areas of interest. Volunteers can self-register through your campaign website or be added manually by your team.

The shift scheduling system lets you create volunteer shifts for canvassing, phone banking, office work, event setup, and election day roles. Volunteers receive automatic email or SMS reminders before their shifts, and the system tracks attendance and hours logged. This data is valuable for recognizing your most dedicated volunteers and for reporting volunteer contributions as in-kind donations where applicable.

Assign volunteers to teams based on geography (poll captains, area coordinators) or function (canvassing team, phone bank team, social media team). Each volunteer sees only the tools and data relevant to their role. The volunteer portal provides a simplified view where they can see upcoming shifts, access their canvassing assignments, view training materials, and log their hours.

Lawn signs remain a highly visible part of Canadian campaigns. RidingDesk's lawn sign module tracks every sign request from initial ask through deployment and eventual retrieval. When a supporter requests a sign during canvassing, phone banking, or through your website, the request is logged with the exact address and any special instructions (e.g., “place near the driveway, not on the boulevard”).

Organize sign deployment into routes for your installation crews. The system generates optimized driving routes for sign teams, groups nearby requests together, and provides turn-by-turn navigation. Each sign can be tracked through its full lifecycle: requested, approved, deployed, needs repair, or retrieved. After the election, use the retrieval tracking feature to ensure all signs are collected promptly, which is required by most municipal bylaws.

The lawn sign map view shows every deployed sign in your riding, colour-coded by status. This helps you identify areas with strong visible support and areas where you need more sign coverage. Campaign managers can also track sign inventory levels and know when to order additional signs from their print supplier.

Create professional campaign landing pages without any coding knowledge. RidingDesk includes a Landing Page Builder with a curated template library designed for Canadian political campaigns: donation pages with integrated tax credit calculators, volunteer signup forms, event registration pages, petition pages, and general campaign information sites. All pages are bilingual-ready and mobile-responsive.

To create a new landing page, navigate to Landing Pages in the dashboard sidebar and click “Create Page.” Start by selecting a template from the template gallery. Templates are organized by purpose (fundraising, volunteer recruitment, event promotion, policy platform) and can be previewed before selection. Once you choose a template, the visual editor lets you customize colours, images, text, and form fields using a drag-and-drop interface. Your campaign branding (logo, colours, candidate photo) is applied automatically from your account settings.

Each landing page includes built-in analytics tracking so you can see visitor counts, conversion rates, and traffic sources. Connect pages to your voter database so that form submissions automatically create or update voter records. Use unique URLs for different outreach channels (social media, email campaigns, print materials) to track which channels drive the most engagement and donations.

When your page is ready, click “Publish” to make it live. Pages can be published to your custom domain or hosted on a RidingDesk subdomain (e.g., yourcandidate.ridingdesk.ca). Share the page URL directly in email campaigns, social media posts, print materials, or QR codes. Published pages can be updated at any time without changing the URL. Donation landing pages include a real-time tax credit calculator that shows donors exactly how much their contribution will cost after the federal or provincial political donation tax credit, which has been shown to significantly increase average donation amounts.

RidingDesk makes it easy to move data in and out of the platform using CSV files. The import wizard walks you through the process in four simple steps. First, upload your CSV file (or drag and drop it onto the upload area). Second, select the data format: choose “Elections Canada Format” if your file follows the standard Elections Canada voters list structure, or “Generic CSV” for any other spreadsheet format. Third, map your CSV columns to RidingDesk fields using the interactive column mapping interface. The system auto-detects common column names (name, address, postal code, phone, email) and suggests mappings, but you can adjust them manually. Fourth, review a preview of the data and confirm the import.

The Elections Canada format is fully supported with automatic parsing of the official voters list structure, including voter name, address, poll division, and sequence number. For generic CSV files, RidingDesk supports any column layout as long as you map at least a name and address. During the column mapping step, you can also configure how duplicates are handled: skip duplicates, update existing records, or create new records regardless.

Exporting data is just as straightforward. Navigate to the relevant section (Voters, Donations, Volunteers, or Canvassing Results) and click the “Export” button. Choose which fields to include, apply any active filters to export a subset of records, and download the CSV file. Voter exports include all custom fields and tags. Donation exports are formatted for financial reporting. Volunteer exports include contact details, skills, and hours logged. Canvassing result exports include voter responses, support levels, timestamps, and canvasser assignments.

RidingDesk is fully bilingual, supporting both English and French throughout the entire platform. The language toggle is located in the site header on every page, as well as on the public landing page, making it easy for any team member or visitor to switch between EN and FR at any time. Your language preference is saved to your profile and persists across sessions and devices.

The French translation uses authentic Canadian French political terminology rather than European French. Terms like “circonscription” (riding), “bureau de scrutin” (polling station), “pointage” (voter ID), and “porte-à-porte” (canvassing) reflect the language actually used by Canadian political operatives and Elections Canada. This ensures that francophone team members feel at home with familiar vocabulary, not awkward machine-translated equivalents.

Bilingual support extends to all user-facing content: dashboard labels, navigation menus, form fields, error messages, email templates, survey questions, and landing pages. Campaign managers can create bilingual surveys and landing pages where respondents choose their preferred language. Canvassing scripts can be configured in both languages so canvassers can switch mid-conversation if a voter prefers the other official language.

The analytics module gives campaign managers deep insight into every aspect of their operation. View comprehensive reports on voter contact rates, canvassing efficiency, phone bank productivity, fundraising trends, email campaign performance, and volunteer engagement. All reports can be filtered by date range, poll division, team, or activity type.

The voter ID summary report is particularly valuable as the campaign progresses. It shows the current distribution of voter support levels across the entire riding and within each poll division: strong supporters, likely supporters, undecided, likely opposition, and strong opposition. Track how these numbers shift over time as your team makes more contacts, and use the data to adjust your targeting strategy.

RidingDesk also includes predictive analytics that estimate your vote share based on voter ID data, historical election results for your riding, and regional polling trends. While no model is perfect, these projections help you understand where you need to focus resources. Export any report to PDF or CSV for sharing with your campaign team, riding association executive, or party headquarters.

Clean data is essential for effective campaigning. RidingDesk provides robust import and export tools to keep your voter database accurate and up to date. Import voter lists from Elections Canada or provincial electoral authorities in their standard formats. The system automatically parses the data, matches records to existing entries, and flags potential duplicates for manual review.

The data hygiene tools help you maintain database quality throughout the campaign. Automated processes identify duplicate voter records, standardize address formats using Canada Post addressing guidelines, validate postal codes, and flag records with missing or inconsistent information. Run hygiene checks after every major import or periodically during the campaign to keep your data reliable.

Export your data in multiple formats for different purposes: CSV for spreadsheets, Elections Canada format for official filings, and structured exports for integration with party databases like Liberalist, CIMS, Populus, or NDP VoteBuilder. All exports respect your role-based access controls, so only authorized users can export sensitive voter data.

RidingDesk integrates with the tools Canadian campaigns already use. Available integrations include Elections Canada (voters list import and compliance reporting), Google Workspace (calendar sync, contact import, Google Sheets export), Mailchimp (email list synchronization and campaign analytics), Stripe and Moneris (payment processing for donations), Twilio (SMS and voice calls), and Mailgun or Amazon SES (email delivery). Each integration is configured through a simple setup wizard in the Settings module.

For campaigns that operate within a larger party structure, RidingDesk supports two-way data synchronization with major Canadian party voter management systems. Push your local voter ID data up to the provincial or national database, and pull down updated voter information, membership lists, and riding-level targeting recommendations. Synchronization schedules can be configured to run automatically at intervals you choose.

API key management is available under Settings > Integrations > API Keys. Generate new API keys with scoped permissions (read-only, read-write, or admin) and set expiration dates for security. Each key includes a descriptive label so you can track which external systems are using which credentials. Revoke keys instantly if they are compromised. The RESTful API provides programmatic access to voter data, campaign metrics, volunteer records, and donation information, secured with OAuth 2.0 tokens that respect the same role-based permissions as the web interface.

Webhook configuration lets you push real-time event notifications to external systems. Configure webhook endpoints under Settings > Integrations > Webhooks. Select which events trigger notifications (new donation received, volunteer signup, canvassing result submitted, survey response, etc.) and specify the destination URL. RidingDesk signs each webhook payload with a shared secret for verification, retries failed deliveries automatically, and provides a delivery log for debugging.

RidingDesk takes the security of your campaign data seriously. The platform implements multiple layers of protection to safeguard voter information, donation records, and campaign operations. All data in transit is encrypted using SSL/TLS (HTTPS is enforced on every connection), and data at rest is encrypted using AES-256 on Canadian-hosted servers. These measures ensure compliance with PIPEDA and provincial privacy legislation.

Security headers are applied to every page served by RidingDesk, including Content Security Policy (CSP), X-Content-Type-Options, X-Frame-Options, Strict-Transport-Security (HSTS), and Referrer-Policy. These headers protect against common web vulnerabilities such as cross-site scripting (XSS), clickjacking, and MIME type sniffing attacks. The platform also implements CSRF (Cross-Site Request Forgery) protection on all state-changing requests using token-based validation, so malicious third-party sites cannot forge actions on behalf of logged-in users.

Rate limiting is applied to all API endpoints and authentication routes to prevent brute force attacks and abuse. Login attempts are throttled after repeated failures, and accounts are temporarily locked after a configurable number of failed password attempts. API rate limits are enforced per key and can be viewed in the API key management panel.

Input validation is enforced on every form and API endpoint. All user-submitted data is sanitized to prevent SQL injection, cross-site scripting, and other injection attacks. File uploads are scanned and restricted to approved file types. The platform regularly undergoes security audits and penetration testing to identify and address vulnerabilities before they can be exploited.

The Settings module is where campaign administrators configure RidingDesk to match their specific needs. Account settings include campaign name, riding information, election date, party affiliation, branding (logo and colours), and default language. These settings propagate throughout the platform, ensuring consistent branding on landing pages, email campaigns, and tax receipts.

Team management is a critical part of Settings. Invite team members by email and assign them roles with appropriate permission levels. RidingDesk offers granular roles including Campaign Manager (full access), Field Organizer (canvassing and volunteers), Fundraising Director (donations and receipts), Communications Lead (campaigns and landing pages), Data Manager (imports and exports), and Volunteer (limited to assigned tasks). Custom roles can also be created to match your specific organizational structure.

Additional settings include election day configuration (advance poll dates, polling station list import), notification preferences, data retention policies, and PIPEDA compliance settings. The billing section shows your current plan, usage statistics, and allows you to upgrade or manage your subscription. Campaign accounts can be archived after election day for record-keeping while reducing storage costs.

Transparency and accountability are essential for any campaign. The RidingDesk audit log records every significant action taken within the platform: voter records modified, data imported or exported, donations processed, team members added or removed, settings changed, and campaigns sent. Each log entry includes the user who performed the action, a timestamp, the specific change made, and the IP address of the request.

Campaign managers and data managers can search and filter the audit log by user, action type, date range, or affected record. This is invaluable for investigating data discrepancies, ensuring compliance with Elections Canada reporting requirements, and responding to any privacy inquiries from voters exercising their rights under PIPEDA. The audit log is immutable and cannot be edited or deleted by any user, including administrators.

Export the audit log to CSV or PDF for your campaign's records. After an election, the audit log provides a complete historical record of all campaign data operations, which can be valuable during financial audits or if your campaign is reviewed by Elections Canada. Audit logs are retained for seven years after the campaign ends, in line with federal record-keeping requirements.