Am I eligible to vote?

To be eligible to vote in British Columbia, you must be: 

• a Canadian citizen,
• 18 or older, and
• a resident of B.C. for the six months before Final Voting Day.

Where and when can I vote?

Vote by mail

Vote-by-mail package requests will be available from July 23, 2024, until 4 p.m. on Final Voting Day. The package will be mailed to you or you can pick it up at a district electoral office. The completed package must be returned to Elections BC before 8 p.m. (Pacific time) on Final Voting Day. More information on voting by mail in the next election will be published here when available.

Vote in advance

There will be six days of advance voting during B.C.’s next provincial election. Advance voting will be available October 10 – 13 and October 15 – 16, 2024 (advance voting will be closed Monday, October 14, for Thanksgiving). Advance voting places will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time. After an election is called, Elections BC publishes advance voting places and the dates they are open in community newspapers, on its website, and on Where to Vote cards sent to voters. Voters can vote at any advance voting place in the province, and all advance voting places are wheelchair accessible.

Vote on Final Voting Day

Final Voting Day for the 2024 Provincial General Election is scheduled for Saturday, October 19, 2024. Voting places will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (Pacific time). Voting places are being confirmed and will be published here when available.

Vote anywhere

B.C. has a “vote anywhere” model, meaning you may vote at any voting place. During the election, voting places will be listed on Elections BC’s website, on Where to Vote cards sent to registered voters, and published in community newspapers throughout B.C. You can also call Elections BC during an election to find out where to vote.

Do I need to register to vote?

Yes! You do need to register in order to vote, however, you do not need to register in advance, meaning, you can register at the polling station on election day. 

Registering at the polls might mean spending a little more time waiting in line, so we recommend registering to vote online in advance.

To avoid waiting in longer Election Day lines, register to vote beforehand!

Do I need to bring ID to vote?

Yes!

You are required to prove your identity AND physical address. There are many types of identification that can be accepted at the polling stations from your British Columbia Driver’s License to your Health Card and a utility bill.

Be sure to double check what kinds of IDs are accepted before you vote!

If you do not have sufficient ID (make sure to check the above list first as there are many acceptable ID options), you can have a registered voter in your district vouch for you. If this is the case, you can learn more about what to do if you don't have an ID directly from Elections BC under Option 3 for Voter ID.

Can I work for Elections BC?

Yes! 

Elections BC has a number of opportunities for employment, in both permanent and temporary positions. 

Given Elections BC’s non-partisan nature, there are certain requirements for staff. Employees of Elections BC are prohibited from certain political activities (including campaigning, canvassing, soliciting funds, writing, etc. on behalf of a candidate or political party in a federal, provincial, or local election, or at any time between elections), and must ensure that any political activities they engage in do not affect the perception of neutrality in their work. Elections BC employees may participate in the political process, but must ensure that their activities in no way compromise the perception of impartiality. 

Learn more about working for Elections BC here. 

I’m working on Election Day?

Voters are entitled to four consecutive hours free from work to vote during advance voting or on Final Voting Day. 

If your work schedule can’t accommodate you to take four consecutive hours off, your employer must provide extra time off. 

This doesn’t mean you get to just take off from work for four hours though. It just means you have to be given a window of four hours to vote at some point during the day. So if you work from 12:30 PM to 8:30 PM, you still have four hours before your shift begins to vote (8 AM to 12 PM).

Your boss can't dock your pay or penalize you for taking the time to vote. You have to be paid your regular wage for the hours you're not working while you vote. Have that conversation with your employer now, as they have the right to decide when you get your time off!

I can’t make it to a polling station on Election Day?

If you already know you're going to be busy, unable to physically reach the polls, or away on vacation (lucky you) on Election Day, make a plan to vote early!

You have three options: 

1: Vote by mail! You can request a vote-by-mail package from July 23, 2024, until 4 p.m. on Final Voting Day.

2: Vote at an advanced poll! Advance voting will be open October 10 – 13 and October 15 – 16, 2024. During this time, you can vote at any polling station that offers advanced voting. Advance voting places will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time.

3: Vote by phone! You can vote by phone if you can’t vote on your own another way. Your voter information must be up to date to vote by phone. You can vote by phone if you:

• have sight loss
• have a disability or underlying health condition that stops you from voting on your own
• are self-isolating during the last week before the election and can’t vote by mail

Telephone operators will help you vote by phone, and will make sure your vote is secret. You can call 1-800-661-8683 to see if you can vote by phone.

I’m a student living away from home?

If you are a student who is eligible to vote in B.C., you can register and vote in either the electoral district where you reside while going to school or the electoral district you usually live in when you’re not at school.

If you attend school outside of B.C., you can vote by mail. 

If you are from another province but are going to school in B.C., you are eligible to vote if you meet the voter registration requirements and have been living in B.C. for at least six months before General Voting Day. You must register using the address where you live while attending school. 

I live in a remote or isolated area?

Vote by mail! All vote-by-mail packages must be returned to Elections BC before 8 p.m. (Pacific time) on Final Voting Day. 

I’m living in an Indigenous community or reserve?

You can choose to vote by mail, or find your nearest polling station. Voting places are being confirmed and will be published here when available. 

I’m living abroad?

To be eligible to vote in B.C., you must be a resident of B.C. for the six months before Final Voting Day. 

I recently moved?

B.C. has a “vote anywhere” model, meaning you can vote at any voting place in the province, regardless of your electoral district! 

To make things quicker at the polls, though, you can register your new address before Election Day.

I’m currently without a home?

To register to vote, you can use the address of a shelter, hostel, or similar support centre that provides food, lodging, or other social services. 

I'm not old enough to vote yet?

16- and 17-year-olds who are Canadian citizens and residents of B.C. can register as a Future Voter! You will be automatically added to the Provincial Voters List when you turn 18. 

Is this information accessible in other formats?

Elections B.C.’s Accessibility Plan outlines the ways that the electoral process is made more accessible to voters by identifying, removing, and preventing barriers. The plan is available in multiple languages, including American Sign Language (ASL) in video format, which can be found here. 

The following voter registration and voting materials have also been translated into multiple languages:

• Register to Vote
• Voter Registration Form
• Residency Rules
• You Need ID to Vote
• 2024 Provincial Electoral Districts

Languages include: 

• Arabic 
• Chinese-Simplified 
• Chinese-Traditional 
• Farsi (Persian)
• French
• German
• Hebrew
• Hindi
• Italian
• Japanese 
• Korean 
• Portuguese
• Punjabi 
• Russian
• Spanish
• Tagalog 
• Vietnamese 

Find the translated materials here. 

Are polling places accessible?

All advance voting places and most general voting places are physically accessible to voters using mobility devices. If you can’t enter a voting place, you can vote outside the building (at the curb or in the parking lot). 

You can get help marking your ballot for any reason. Tell the election official at the voting place if you want help, or you can bring a friend or family member to help you. Your friend or family member must declare they will help based on your wishes.

Voters can bring their own devices to the voting places to use. There is also an Accessible Voting System at each district electoral office to allow voters to vote independently. This includes voters with sight loss and voters with other forms of disability. Voters will have the option to listen to an audio recording of the candidate list for their district and cast their vote by using a hand-held selector device, sip-and-puff straws, or paddles.

All voting places have resources for you to mark your ballot if you have sight loss. All voting places have:

• the List of Candidates in uncontracted Braille
• Braille ballot templates
• large print ballot posters

Election officials are trained to help if you are deaf or hard of hearing. There are visual aids at all voting places. You can also:

• bring an interpreter to help
• contact Elections BC by phone using voice to text services or by Video Relay Service (VRS) at 1-888-456-5448.

You are welcome to bring a translator or interpreter to help at the voting place. This includes interpreters for:

• sign language
• tactile signing
• tracking

The translator or interpreter must declare they are able to act as a translator or interpreter, and that they will do the best job they can.