Dear “frustrated advance poll voters” in Canada. I really think that we should be treating the fact that there were such long lineups at some of the advance polling stations this weekend as great news. That’s nearly a 35% increase [update: it was actually a 71% increase! – confirmed by Elections Canada] over the last federal election, and you were a part of it! The more people participate in the democratic process the better it works. Please keep things in perspective and realize that a minor inconvenience in your schedules for a few hours approximately every 4 years is not a lot to ask for given how lucky you are to be a citizen of this great country.
Elections Canada is actually quite well prepared in my opinion, as evidenced by the fact that they were able to mobilize 20,000 additional staff so quickly upon learning of the unanticipated advance poll voter turnout. [In the interest of full disclosure, I’ve had the privilege of doing some consulting and training work for Elections Canada but it had absolutely nothing to do with that].
I just hope this high voter turnout trend continues on October 19th. In order to play my small part I would like to use this little blog of mine to remind Canadians that happen to stumble across this post of the following:
- October 19th is Election Day. Polls will be open for 12 hours.
- If you’re registered, you should now have received a Voter Information Card by mail. It tells you when and where to vote. You can also use the online Voter Information Service to find out where to vote.
- If you’re not registered, here are your Options to Register (including the ability to do so online).
- Here are the ID Requirements for you to be able to cast a vote.
- Here are your options if you want to contact Elections Canada directly.
Happy voting!