Election 2015 Advance Polls: What you need if you want to vote right now

Since Stephen Harper’s Conservative Government called one of the longest election periods in Canadian history, we’ve got a long way to go until the federal election on October 19. That means still another month until Canadians will hit the general polling stations to decide the future of the country.

If you’ve been finding yourself wishing you could cast your vote early, well then there’s good news: you can vote right now, and you’ve got a few options.

Register to vote

The first step. Obviously it won’t matter how you want to vote if you aren’t allowed.

Vote by mail

If you’ll be outside of your riding on election day, or you just simply feel like it, you can cast your vote by mail. Apply before October 13 to be sent your special ballot voting kit. Voting through Her Majesty’s postal system? What a time to be alive!

Vote at an Elections Canada office

There are more than 400 Elections Canada offices across the country, and they’re all open for early voting from now until October 13. Hours are Monday to Friday, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and from Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.

New rules have changed how you can prove who you are at the voting station, so pay attention. The three options:

(1) Show one of these pieces of ID:

Driver’s license
Provincial or Territorial ID
Any other government card with your photo, name, and current address

(2) Show two of these documents, at least one with your current address:

Health card
Canadian passport
Birth certificate
Certificate of Canadian citizenship
Citizenship card
Social insurance number card
Indian status card
Band membership card
Métis card
Card issued by an Inuit local authority
Canadian Forces identity card
Veterans Affairs health card
Old age security card
Hospital card
Medical clinic card
Label on a prescription container
Identity bracelet issued by a hospital or long-term care facility
Blood donor card
CNIB card
Credit card
Debit card
Employee card
Student identity card
Public transportation card
Library card
Liquor identity card
Parolee card
Firearms licence
Licence or card issued for fishing, trapping or hunting
Utility bill (e.g. electricity; water; telecommunications services including telephone, cable or satellite)
Bank statement
Credit union statement
Credit card statement
Personal cheque
Government statement of benefits
Government cheque or cheque stub
Pension plan statement
Residential lease or sub-lease
Mortgage contract or statement
Income tax assessment
Property tax assessment or evaluation
Vehicle ownership
Insurance certificate, policy or statement
Correspondence issued by a school, college or university
Letter from a public curator, public guardian or public trustee
Targeted revision form from Elections Canada to residents of long-term care facilities
Letter of confirmation of residence from a First Nations band or reserve or an Inuit local authority
Letter of confirmation of residence, letter of stay, admission form or statement of benefits from one of the following designated establishments:
- Student residence
- Seniors’ residence
- Long-term care facility
- Shelter
- Soup kitchen

(3) If you ID doesn’t have your current address, take an oath:

Show two pieces of ID with your name, and have someone confirm that you are who you say you are.