How to vote in the federal election

This week, PM Harper is expected to ask the GG to dissolve Parliament and call elections for October 14. In the last election, in 2006, fewer than 40,000 out of a possible total of 2.7 million Canadians living abroad voted, and for the most part these were Canadian Forces and other federal government employees. Of course, many of the 2.7 million are not eligible (away from Canada over 5 years, for example.) But many Canadian expats who could vote are simply unaware of their eligibility, or feel too far away and detached from the Canadian scene to be interested. But think of the impact that expats could have as an interest group if they doubled or tripled that vote this year!

Here's how to register: A) Either go to the Elections Canada website (www.elections.ca) and follow the links as follows:
- Voters
- Information on voting by mail outside Canada
- Next
- Resident in Canada? (say “noâ€

Good for you, John! Thank you! This is a good reminder and some helpful steps.

hmm I am registered in one of the by-election ridings, I obviously will not get my forums there by the 2 of september.

Don't worry, Carebear, the election will almost certainly be called before the by-elections (scheduled Sep 8th) and will overtake them. They will be folded in to the general election. John

so what should i do then? can I just send in the other forum even though I am registered to vote in one of the by-election ridings? I can't truthfully answer no to that question.

If you are already registered to vote in a particular riding in which there is currently a by-election going on, you probably, in theory, do not need to re-register. When the general elections are called and the by-elections are overtaken, Elections Canada should/should simply transfer your registration to their general elections list.

If you have already sent in your ballot for the by-election, it will simply be filed away along with all the other advance voting ballots. It will not be opened and it will not be applied to the general elections - ie you'll need to vote again.

Frankly, I would not simply trust that your earlier registration stands. The general elections are expected to be called this weekend - ie in 2 to 4 days. If you wait until Monday and then fill out the registration form again - with identical information as the first time - it seems to me you are just being diligent, and doing nothing wrong.

By the way, saying "no" to whether or not you live in one of the by-election ridings (if you go onto the site now, for example) is just a matter of effectively surfing the Elections Canada website to get to the registration form. It is not, by itself, a legal declaration. John

I haven't sent anything in yet so I will wait and do it on monday.

Parliament was dissolved a few minutes ago and
elections are set for October 14. To ensure that your ballot is received and then delivered in time, it would be wise to mail in your registration form no later than September 23 - three weeks before E-day (earlier if you live in countries with particularly inefficient mail service.) But why wait? Register now!

Some readers may be interested that the Canadian Expat Association sent a questionnaire to the five political parties asking for their policies on a range of issues of interest to Canadians abroad (including better passport service - a constant beef on this list) and their newsletter reports the results. You can get a copy by emailing: info@thecanadianexpat.com
John

And the tories are only leading by 45% in Alberta at the moment.