|
|
| Pages |
Election FAQ Most of these questions and answers were taken from the Elections Canada web page. If you need further information from them, I highly recommend visiting their very thorough web site. I have just condensed their information and added some comments for clarity. NOTE: A lot of these rules still apply to other elections in Canada - but for proper clarification, you should visit the Elections Canada website.
How did we get in this mess and how much is it gonna cost us? Who calls the election? The Governor in Council formally calls the election and instructs the Chief Electoral Officer to issue the writs for an election. To put it in simple terms - the PM decides when he/she wants an election and then instructs the Governor General to "dissolve" parliament and calls an election. How much did the last general election cost? The cost of the 1997 general election was $129.2 million. The cost of the final door-to-door enumeration, which was conducted outside the 1997 general election period, was $71.4 million. The combined cost of the enumeration and election were $200.6 million.
Elector-fying Who can vote? Well, if you are a Canadian citizen, and will be 18 or older on polling day, warm those pencils up because you are eligible. That makes you an elector. There are some exceptions, like if you are the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada, the Assistant Chief Electoral officer (since these positions are responsible for ensuring the accuracy and legitimacy of the election, he/she needs to remain neutral and therefore must give up the right to vote) or if you are in a correctional institution (jail) serving a sentence of 2 years or more. If you are serving a prison sentence of less than two years in a correctional institution, you have the right to vote in federal elections and referendums. What if I have been living out of the country? According to Election Canada: if you an elector and you have been living away from Canada for less than five consecutive years since your last visit home, you can vote under The Special Voting Rules. You can register to vote at any time – just click here. Am I on the voters list? If not - how do I get on? Approximately 12 days after an election is called, you should receive a voter information card (VIC) in the mail. The VIC tells you if you are correctly registered on the voters list and what polling station to vote at. If you have recently moved, become a new citizen, or turned 18, you may not receive a VIC. If you do not receive the VIC, you need to contact the returning officer for your riding to make sure you are registered. If you don't know the name of your electoral district, call 1 800 INFO-VOTE (1 800 463-6868). The addresses and telephone numbers of the returning officers for all ridings are also posted on the Elections Canada web site during an election. If you don't know the name of your electoral district, call 1 800 INFO-VOTE (1 800 463-6868). What if I live in two places - ie) University and Home. Let's not get greedy now - you can only have one "ordinary residence" (the place you call home). This gets kinda tricky for students sometimes. For example, I live in Kingston for most of the year as a student - but my "home" is in Oshawa. Basically, I have to choose between the two. Since I spend most of my time in Kingston and have essentially "lived" here for 2 years, I will be voting in Kingston this year. To make sure that you are on the voting list for your ordinary residence, contact the returning officer for your riding. If you are still confused, see section 8 of the Canada Elections Act. If you will be away from your ordinary residence on election day in another city, province, etc. or if you can't get to a polling station: If you're going to be away, your best be is to try and vote at the advance polls. The dates and places are indicated on your voter information card. If you will be away during the advance polls, as well as on election day, you can vote by special ballot, either by mail or in person at the office of your returning officer. To vote by special ballot, you must register after an election has been called. You must register by 6:00 p.m. on the sixth day before election day, so it's important to act quickly. You can obtain a registration form from the office of your returning officer. However, once you are registered to vote by special ballot, you can only vote this way. For more information, see the handy-dandy Elections Canada page, Voting by Special Ballot. D'oh! I forgot to register. Can I register to vote on election day? Yes, you can register to vote at the polling station on election day. Elections Canada advises, however, that you register to vote before election day. There are two ways to register to vote:
When do I vote? And cool election day information. In 1996, the Canada Elections Act was amended to stagger voting hours across the country, so that a majority of results would be available to Canadians at approximately the same time. Therefore the polls are opened at different times depending on where you live: Newfoundland, Atlantic and Central
time zones: 8:30am - 8:30pm Because you wacky Saskatchewan people don't go on daylight savings time, special voting hours will apply in Saskatchewan. Advance polls: 12:00pm - 8:00 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Monday, the 10th, 9th and 7th days before election day. You are also entitled to three consecutive hours to go and vote during polling hours. Wahoo!
Electoral Districts What is my electoral district? Canada is divided into 301 electoral districts. One representative, or member of Parliament (MP), is elected for each electoral district. Each electoral district has a returning officer, who opens an office when an electoral event is called. The returning officer is responsible for organizing and administering federal elections and referendums within that electoral district. To find out the name of your electoral district, call 1 800 INFO-VOTE (1 800 463-6868) or visit the Elections Canada web page How many electoral districts are there in Canada? There are 301 electoral districts in Canada.
Elections Canada What does Elections Canada do? Elections Canada is the
non-partisan agency responsible for conducting federal elections, by-elections
and referendums. Elections Canada plans, coordinates, monitors and reports on
federal electoral events. Click
here for more information about this subject. The Chief Electoral Officer is Jean-Pierre Kingsley, who was appointed in 1990. The Chief Electoral Officer is head of Elections Canada. Click here for more information about this subject. What does the Chief Electoral Officer do? The Chief Electoral Officer is responsible for managing elections, referendums, and other aspects of our electoral system under the provisions of the Canada Elections Act, the Referendum Act, and the Electoral Boundaries Redistribution Act. Click here for more information about this subject. To whom does Elections Canada report? Elections Canada comes under the responsibility of the Chief Electoral Officer who reports directly to the House of Commons through the Speaker. How do I register a complaint? To register a complaint about an alleged offence under the Act, you must send a letter within six months of the commission of the alleged offence to:
So how do I get a hold of
Elections Canada? 001 800 514-6868 (613) 993-2975 For people who are deaf or hard of
hearing: Fax: (613) 954-8584 Web page: http://www.elections.ca
HOME Election 2000 Election 2004
|
