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As Tories began voting Thursday on a proposed unity deal with the Wildrose, only about half of the Progressive Conservative party’s approximately 50,000 members were registered to cast a ballot.

The cut-off for registering to vote was Tuesday at midnight, but PC Leader Jason Kenney said Thursday it was a “soft deadline.” PC members are still able to contact the party to receive the PIN needed to vote either online or by telephone.

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“My understanding is about 25,000 have registered,” Kenney told reporters at a photo op where he cast his ballot by computer.

“The truth is that it’s a complex administration process that some people may have been challenged by. They have to go through a multi-step process.”

PC party executive director Janice Harrington said the registration deadline was set up to facilitate the voting process. But the party always intended that anyone holding a membership by July 12 would still be able to sign up even after the registration cut-off.