Angela Poulin, Election Outreach Worker and Haley Cairns, Outreach and Communications Coordinator at Carnegie’s National Indigenous People’s Day Block Party event
As Vancouver prepares for the 2026 municipal election on October 17, the Election Office team is working to ensure residents have the information, support and access they need to vote.
Much of this work happens long before people arrive at a voting place to cast their vote. From community outreach and public education to election logistics and accessibility planning, we’re committed to making voting easy, accessible and inclusive.
We spoke with Haley Cairns, Outreach and Communications Coordinator for the 2026 Vancouver Election, about how the team is connecting with communities across Vancouver and what you may not know about the work involved in preparing for an election.
Meeting voters where they are
In her role, Haley works with community organizations across Vancouver, helping residents learn about voting options and encouraging civic participation.
She coordinates opportunities for the Outreach team to connect with residents at community events, such as farmers markets and information sessions, and develops election-focused materials to share with community members and their networks. This work ensures election information reaches residents, especially those who may face barriers to voting.
As election season approaches, residents can expect to see the outreach team at events across the city, providing information about voting and answering questions.
While outreach activities are only beginning to ramp up, Haley says the response from community organizations has already been encouraging.
“What's already been the most rewarding is how warm and welcoming so many community organizations have been in inviting me and my team into their space. The best part of this work is being out in the community and engaging with folks directly. Seeing people excited about democracy and passionate about their communities is so fulfilling!”
The outreach program is an important part of the City's commitment to ensuring all eligible voters understand how, when and where to cast their ballot.
Supporting an accessible and inclusive election
The election team's outreach efforts are closely connected to broader enhancements for the 2026 election. Changes that aim to expand capacity, reduce waiting times and improve accessibility include larger voting locations, more election staff, additional language support and more assistive ballot marking devices for voters with disabilities.
Together, these improvements and outreach efforts help ensure residents are aware of the voting options and accessibility supports available to them.
The work behind the ballot
Like many City services, election planning involves extensive preparation that often goes unseen.
From securing voting locations and recruiting election workers to developing communications materials and accessibility supports, preparing for an election requires months of planning and coordination.
One thing that surprised Haley after joining the team was the scale of work involved.
"Before starting this role, I had no idea how much goes into planning an election. There's such a huge amount of work happening behind the scenes, and everyone on this team is working so hard to make sure residents have the information and access they need to vote."
The team recently reached an important milestone with the opening of the Election Office to the public on July 20. Located at 305 West 8th Avenue, the office has been renovated to improve accessibility and includes an entrance ramp, automatic doors and a universal accessible washroom.
As preparations continue ahead of October 17, the Election Office's goal remains the same: to help make voting easy, accessible and inclusive so every eligible resident has the opportunity to have their voice heard.
Visit vancouver.ca/vote to learn more.
- The Election Office Communications team (left to right: Natti Schmid, Communications Manager, Kath Jiang, Senior Communications Specialist and Haley Cairns, Outreach and Communications Coordinator)
- Haley at the Union Gospel Mission “Summer Connect” event, providing coffee and donuts in the DTES
- Haley doing community outreach at Musqueam’s National Indigenous People’s Day event