Federal Election 2025 advance voting starts today: Hours, locations and more
Get in, Canada. We're heading to the polls.
Advance voting for the 2025 federal election begins today on April 18, 2025.
Here's what you need to know and some resources to read before making your decision at the polls.
• Voting in Canada's 2025 federal election: What you need to know • Federal Election 2025: 12 hot topics and where each party stands • Federal election 2025: Who's running in my riding?
Advance voting takes place on: • Friday, April 18 • Saturday, April 19 • Sunday, April 20, or • Monday, April 21
Voting stations will be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on each of those days. If you're in line before 9 p.m., you'll be permitted to vote.
You should have received a voter information card in the mail by now. That card will list where you can go to vote on advance voting days.
If you haven't received a voter information card, you can find your advance voting station using Elections Canada's voter information service.
Look up your advance voting station online here.
Unlike the provincial election, rules for the federal election are different and you must vote at your assigned advance voting station.
According to Elections Canada, this is due to the sheer number of voters in a federal election and the need to keep things organized and to ensure there is no vote duplication taking place.
'With a much smaller number of potential electors, a province like B.C. can cross-check between polling places, so that by sharing information it ensures the integrity of the vote: one vote per person,' said James Hale, Elections Canada spokesperson. 'Given the multiple time zones and hundreds of polling places, that would be very challenging to do on a national basis.'
If it's more convenient or if you can't make it to your assigned voting station on advance voting days or on election day, you can vote at any Elections Canada office up until 6 p.m. on April 22. There are about 500 Elections Canada offices open and you can find them here.
However, if you vote at an Elections Canada office, you'll be using a special ballot process with blank spaces to write in names, whereas the ballot at your assigned voting station will have the actual list of candidates in your riding.
According to Elections Canada, peak times for voting — that is, when the lines will be longest — is between 10 a.m. to noon. From 1 to 4 p.m., it's still busy but less so.
The best times to vote are in the mornings before 10 a.m. or after 4 p.m.
No. Did you know that taking a photo of your completed ballot (or someone else's) is considered illegal? According to Elections Canada, 'it violates the secrecy of the vote under the Canada Elections Act.' It's also a violation to post a photo of a completed ballot in any way, including on social media.
If you want to post photographic proof of having done your civic duty and you don't want to spoil your vote, just take a photo of yourself outside the voting station or with your 'I just voted' sticker instead.
sip@postmedia.com
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