FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q When is the election?
A Election day is June 2. Elections happen every four years in Ontario with the process starting when the premier visits the Lieutenant-governor to say they want to call an election. What's known as the writs of election are put together for each of 124 electoral districts as official notice that the election process is underway. Once the writs of election are issued, the campaign begins and lasts 28 days.
Q How do I register to vote?
A Canadian citizens living in Ontario and who will be at least 18 years old on election day can use Elections Ontario eRegistration to add themselves to the voters list or confirm that their info is up to date.
Or submit an application and return it to Elections Ontario by mail or email. Download the Elections Ontario Application to the Voters List pdf, fill it out, and send it in by May 23.
You'll get a voter information card with information on when and where to vote.
Voters who aren't yet on the voters list can register in person when they go to vote.
Q How do I vote?
A You can vote in person on election day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the voting location assigned to you based on your current residential address, at an advance voting location or before voting day at your returning office, or by mail.
There are also special measures for voters who need a home visit to cast their ballot, are in hospital, are students or are deployed with the Canadian Forces.
Q Can I vote online?
A No.
Q How do I vote by mail?
A The application to vote by mail deadline is 6 p.m. ET on May 27. Elections Ontario must receive your completed voting kit — which will be sent to you once your application is reviewed and approved — by 6 p.m. on June 2.
You can register online or return the application by mail or email.
Q How does advance voting work?
A You can vote at any of the advance voting locations in your electoral district, which will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Or vote in person at your local returning office from the day after an election has been called in your electoral district until 6 p.m. the day before Election day. Depending on when you go, you'll get either a write-in ballot or a ballot with the candidates listed.
Q What ID do I need to bring with me to vote?
A If you are on the voters list, you need to present your voter information card and one piece of ID with your name. If you are not on the voters list, you need one piece of ID showing both your name and current address.
Q How old do you have to be to vote?
A You must be 18 years of age or older. If you are 16 or 17 years old, you can add yourself to the Ontario Register of Future Voters and the information will be automatically transferred to the voters list when you turn 18.
Q Can newcomers to Canada vote in the provincial election?
A You must be a Canadian citizen as well as a resident of Ontario to be eligible to vote in an Ontario election.
Elections Ontario provides information about voting in other languages — 38 to be exact.
Q Can I vote if I'm out of the province?
A If you're temporarily living outside of Ontario, you may be eligible to register as an absentee voter.
Q Can I get time off work to vote?
A Yes — if your work hours don't give you three consecutive hours to vote while the polls are open (9 a.m. to 9 p.m.). Under Ontario's Election Act, employees can ask for time off to vote and can't lose pay but employers can grant the time off at a time “that best suits the convenience of the employer.”
For example: as Ottawa-based employment law firm EmondHarden explained in an online post, if an employee works from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., they don't need time off because they have three hours after work to vote (6 p.m. - 9 p.m.). But if a worker is on shift from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., the employer must give time off, so the employee has three consecutive hours to vote; this could mean letting them leave work an hour early at 6 p.m.
Q Can you vote if you have no fixed address?
A Yes. If you don't have a permanent residence, the place where you have returned most often to eat or sleep in the past five weeks is considered your home. If you don't have ID showing both your name and address, Elections Ontario has a temporary identification form called a Certificate of Identity and Residence. Talk to the administrator of the housing help centre or food bank that you use most often to get one, Elections Ontario said.