Voting process

There are two steps to voting in municipal elections in Vancouver. First, you must make sure you are registered, and second, go to your voting place on election day.

1. Get registered

You must register to vote. You can register to vote in a municipal election in Vancouver if you:

are 18 years of age or older on general voting day (November 19, 2005)
are a Canadian citizen
have lived in B.C. for at least six months immediately before the day you register
have lived in Vancouver for at least 30 days immediately before the day you register
are not disqualified by law from voting.

Vancouver residents who meet all these requirements can register.

The City of Vancouver uses the provincial voters list to determine who is on the voters list in Vancouver. If you voted in the last provincial election, then you are on the provincial voters list and you will also be on the City voters list (provided you were a Vancouver resident at the time of provincial registration).

If you were not registered for the May 17, 2005 provincial election or have moved since that time, you may not be on the voters list for the November 19 general local election in Vancouver.

The advance registration period closed September 27, 2005, but you can still register at the time of voting. If you're not sure where to vote, visit the Where do I vote? section.

If you have any questions about registering, contact the Election Office at 604-873-7681 or email voter.questions@vancouver.ca for assistance.

ID Required

To register at the time of voting, you must show two pieces of identification containing your name and address. One must have your signature.

Here are the kinds of ID that are acceptable:

B.C. Driver’s Licence
B.C. ID card from Motor Vehicle Branch
ICBC Owner’s Certificate of Insurance and Vehicle Licence
B.C. Care Card
Ministry of Social Development and Economic Security Request for Continued Assistance Form SDES8
Social Insurance card
Citizenship Card
property tax notice
credit card or debit card
utility bill for electricity, natural gas, water, telephone or cable services
welfare cheque stub showing identifying information
statutory declaration or sworn affidavit (from a notary public, lawyer, or commissioner for taking oaths).

If you have any questions regarding acceptable types of ID, contact the Vancouver Election Office at 604-873-7681.

2. Go to your voting place on election day

You can vote any time between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. on November 19, 2005 at the voting place for your neighbourhood. You will receive a "Where to Vote" card in the mail in late October, showing your voting division and voting place address.
Bring your "Where to Vote" card to the voting place. This will streamline the process when you vote.
If you didn't get a "Where to Vote" card, don't worry -- you can register on voting day (see the requirements for ID above).
When you go to your voting place on November 19, City election staff will be there to help.
If you are not already registered, you may have to line up to register, and present your two pieces of ID.
After your name is checked on the Voters List, you will be given a ballot, a special pen to mark the ballot, and a secrecy sleeve. View a sample ballot.
Go to the voting booth and make your choices with the special pen provided. Follow the instructions on the ballot.
Put your completed ballot in the secrecy sleeve provided, then walk over to the voting machine.


The voting booth.	The voting machine.	Ballot being fed into the voting machine.

The AccuVote system was used in the 2002, 1999 and 1996 Vancouver elections, and will be used for the 2005 election. It's accurate, simple to use, and can provide final election results within hours after the close of voting. Learn more about the AccuVote and automated voting.
Either you or a City election staff person will feed your ballot into the voting machine. (It doesn't matter which way the ballot is fed into the AccuVote -- the machine will read it properly from any direction.)
You're done! That's all there is to it.

Now you can wait for the election results to come in after the polls close at 8 p.m. Watch this website for results starting around 8:30 p.m. on November 19.

Local media will report the election results as they come in. Unofficial results should be available around 10 p.m. on November 19.

Official election results will be available November 23 by 4 p.m.

DO YOU NEED HELP VOTING?
If you need help to vote (for example, to read the names, or to fill in the ballot), ask for the Presiding Election Official (PEO) in charge at the voting place. All Election staff must take an oath to preserve the secrecy of the ballot, so they can help voters with a physical disability or who have difficulty reading or writing. Or, you can bring someone you know to the voting place to help you. This person will have to take an oath of secrecy that will be given by the PEO.

If you are unable to enter the voting place, you may ask to vote near the voting place, and an election official will come to you.

English as a second language (ESL)
Many voting places will have people with fluency in languages other than English who can help you. Ask at the voting place. You may also bring your own interpreter, who would be required to take an oath of secrecy given by the PEO.

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