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On December 10, 2002 City Council decided to hold a vote on Vancouver's participation in hosting the 2010 Olympic Winter Games and Paralympic Winter Games. The "Olympic Vote" took place on February 22, 2003. The results were 64% in favour of the Olympic Bid (voter turn-out was 50%).
The International Olympic Committee subsequently chose Vancouver on July 2,
2003, as Host City for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The 2010
Olympic Winter Games will take place in Vancouver and Whistler February 12-28,
2010. The Paralympic Winter Games for athletes with disabilities will be held
March 12-21, 2010.
Below are details of the process around the February 22, 2003 plebiscite held
in Vancouver. These are given for archival purposes.
Olympic Vote Process
On December 10, 2002 City Council decided to hold a vote on Vancouver's
participation in hosting the 2010 Olympic Winter Games and Paralympic
Winter Games.
The "Olympic Vote" will take place on February 22, 2003 from
8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
To take part in the Olympic Vote you must be a Vancouver resident,
or own property in Vancouver. (click
here for complete details on voter eligibility)
As of the last civic election (November 16, 2002), there were 293,263
registered voters in Vancouver. For the Olympic Vote, the Election Office
is planning for a voter turn-out in the range of 30 per cent (or about
90,000 voters)
The following pages give detailed, process-oriented information about
the Olympic Vote. In the days leading up to the vote, more information
will be added to the site.
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Here is the exact question that will be on the ballot:
"Do you support or do you oppose the City of Vancouver's
participation in hosting the 2010 Olympic Winter Games and Paralympic
Winter Games?
___ YES, I support the City of Vancouver's participation.
___ NO, I oppose the City of Vancouver's participation."
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Translations
These translations of the ballot question are provided for convenience.
Only the official English-language ballot issued at the voting place will
be counted. Read the question in:
(will open in a new browser window)
Election Office
If you have any questions about the Olympic Vote, call the Vancouver Election
Office at 604-873-7681 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday-Friday. For
answers to frequently asked questions about the Olympic Vote process,
call our Olympic Vote Infoline at 604-873-7688. (You must have a touch-tone
phone to use this line.)
The Olympic Vote is being conducted in a manner similar to a civic election.
In Vancouver, the rules that govern civic elections are contained in the
Vancouver Charter (Parts I and II).
Click
here to go to the Elections section of the Vancouver Charter.
Olympic Vote Brochure
This four-page brochure was delivered, by Canada Post, to every household
in Vancouver in the first week of February. It contains important process
information about the Olympic Vote.
Olympic Vote News Releases
Olympic Vote Ads
Print ads
Radio ads
TV ads
Audio and video clips require the free Windows
Media Player. Download here.
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BACKGROUND INFO
NOTE: By clicking the link below you will leave the Web pages
maintained by the Chief Election Officer, and go to other City of Vancouver
web pages designed to:
1) present background information on the City's involvement in the Olympics
and
2) provide links to organizations with various opinions about the Olympic
bid.
The Chief Election Officer is not responsible for information found on
these linked pages.
›› Click here to view background
info on the City's Olympic bid.
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MAYOR'S FORUMS
NOTE: By clicking the link below you will leave the Web pages
maintained by the Chief Election Officer, and go to other City of Vancouver
web pages maintained by the Mayor's Office.
›› Click
here for info on the Mayor's Forums
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WHO CAN VOTE?
You can take part in the Olympic Vote if you:
- are a Canadian citizen
- are 18 years of age or older on general voting day (February 22)
- have lived in B.C. for at least six months on the day of voting
- have lived in Vancouver for at least 30 days on the day of voting
- are not disqualified by law from voting.
All Vancouver residents who meet these requirements can vote. It does
not matter where you live in Vancouver, or whether you rent or own your
home.
If you own property in Vancouver but live somewhere else in BC, you can
also participate in the Olympic Vote. This is called being a "non-resident
property elector." As such, you can vote, as long as you:
- are a Canadian citizen
- are 18 years of age or older on general voting day (February 22)
- have lived in B.C. for at least six months on the day of voting
- have owned real estate in Vancouver, registered in your name, for
at least 30 days on the day of voting.
Non-resident property electors can vote only once, regardless of the
number of properties they own. If there is more than one registered owner
of a property, only one of those individuals may, with the written consent
of the majority of the other owners, register as a non-resident property
elector. If you have any questions about registering and voting as a "non-resident
property elector," contact the Vancouver Election Office at 604-873-7681.
As the University Endowment Lands (UEL) are outside the City of Vancouver
boundaries, UEL residents are NOT eligible to vote on the Olympic question.
Landed immigrants who are not yet Canadian citizens are not permitted
to vote.
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THE VOTING PROCESS
The Voters List used in the recent civic election will NOT be
used for the Olympic Vote. Registration will be at the time of voting
only, and will only be for this vote. Registration for the Olympic Vote
will not affect your status on the Voters List used for municipal or provincial
elections.
There are two steps to taking part in the Olympic Vote. First, get registered,
and second, cast your ballot on voting day.
1. Get Registered
Everyone must register to take part in the Olympic Vote. Registration
will be completed at the voting place, with your signature and an official
witness signature.
However, you can start the process beforehand. Registration forms will
be in a brochure that will be sent to every Vancouver household, as well
as all community centres and libraries, in early February.
Complete the form in advance, but DON'T sign it. Bring it with you to
the voting place. This will speed up the process at the voting place.
Click here to download a PDF of the
registration form (69KB PDF)
Registration forms will also be available at all of the 39 voting locations.
Non-resident property electors must bring a certificate (previously received)
from the Chief Election Officer to vote on February 22. Call 604-873-7681
for more details.
These translations of the Voter Registration Form are provided for convenience
and demonstration purposes. However, only the English-language Voter Registration
Form will be accepted at the voting place.
ID Required
When registering at the time of voting, you will need to 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 name and ID number
- statutory declaration or sworn affidavit of identity (from a notary
public, lawyer, or commissioner for taking oaths).
If you have any questions, contact the Vancouver Election Office at 604-873-7681.
2. Go to your voting place on voting day
You can vote any time between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. on February 22, 2003 at
any one of the 39 voting locations. (You can vote only once. It is a serious
offence to vote more than once.)
A downloadable map and a list of the voting locations will be available
here after January 13.
To find the voting places closest to your home, use our
voting place search tool.
After you have registered at the voting place, you will be given a ballot
and a special pen to mark the ballot.
Go to the voting booth and mark your choice with the special pen provided.
Follow the instructions on the ballot.
Take your completed ballot to the voting machine.
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| The voting booth. |
The voting machine. |
Ballot being fed into the voting machine. |
A City election staff person will feed your ballot into the voting
machine.
You're done! That's all there is to it.
Unofficial results of the Olympic Vote will be available on the City
Web site after 10 p.m. on February 22, 2003. Local media will report the
unofficial vote results around this time as well.
Official results of the Olympic Vote will be available by February 26,
2003 at 4 p.m.
DO YOU NEED HELP VOTING?
If you need help to vote (for example, to read the text, 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.
English as a second language (ESL)
Many voting places have people with fluency in languages other than English
who can help you. Ask at the voting place. You may also bring your own
translator, who would be required to take an oath of secrecy given by
the PEO.
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OTHER WAYS TO VOTE
Advance Voting
If you know you will not be able to vote on February 22, you may qualify
to vote before then. To vote in advance you must sign a declaration stating
your reasons. Here are some of the reasons for advance voting:
- you expect to be out of town on February 22
- you are unable to vote on February 22 due to reasons of conscience
or circumstances beyond your control
- physical disability or impaired mobility
- you will be working on the election on February 22.
The City will offer advance voting opportunities on February 12 and 18
(8 a.m. to 8 p.m.) at City Hall.
Voting by Mail
If you are unable to go to a voting place because you are sick or disabled,
you may ask to vote by mail. If you wish to vote by mail, you must contact
the Vancouver Election Office to apply to get a mail ballot.
Mail ballots will be sent out February 10 and must be returned to the
Vancouver Election Office no later than 8 p.m. on February 22, to be counted.
Special Voting
Some people will be able to vote in medical facilities. To find out if
you can vote this way, or for details on special voting opportunities,
call the Vancouver Election Office at 604-873-7681.
If you are giong to be away from Vancouver between February 12 and 22,
unfortunately you will NOT be able to vote on the Olympic question. There
is no provision in the Vancouver Charter for absentee voting.
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WHERE DO I VOTE?
For the Olympic Vote, voters can go to any one of 39
locations spread across the city. (You can vote only once. It
is a serious offence to vote more than once.)
To find the voting places closest to your home, use our
voting place search tool.
The City has created a map of voting places for the Olympic Vote in Vancouver.
Click on the link below to view a PDF of the map and list of 39 voting
locations:
You may also view most of the voting places through VanMap,
the City's Web-based map system that pulls together information and data
from a variety of sources, and puts it into maps you can view, save or
print out.
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Privacy and the Olympic Vote
You may request that personal information on your registration form be
omitted or obscured from post-voting public inspection. See the Presiding
Election Officer at the voting place to make the request.
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Working for the Olympic Vote
Due to time constraints, the City plans to select from the trained pool
of voting place staff who worked during the November 16, 2002 civic election.
If you are interested in working on the 2005 civic election, submit your
application in June, 2005.
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Past Votes
Examples of past votes not carried out in conjuction with a general local
election include:
- 1992 By-election for Councillor (Lynn Kennedy elected) 10.2 % voter
turn-out
- 1990 Referendum on School Amendment Act (YES) 12.8 % voter turn-out
- 1981 Plebiscite on Sunday shopping in Gastown/Chinatown (YES) 15.7
% voter turn-out.
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(Excel spreadsheet)