Information for Voters

The ballot will include one section:

• Opportunity to vote for one Councillor

To be announced. 

To be announced. 

To be announced.

The Provincial Voters List from Elections BC is being used to create Victoria's list of eligible voters by name and address. Click here to find out if you're on the list.

If you're not on the list, please see Voter Qualifications below to find out if you are eligible to vote, and Identify Documents to know what two identity documents to bring with you to register at the voting opportunity you attend.

Note: Even if you are registered, you will need to bring one piece of valid ID on voting day. Please see Identity Documents for acceptable identification.

In order to be eligible to vote as a resident elector on Voting Day in the 2020 municipal by-election you must satisfy all of the following criteria:

• age 18 or older when registering to vote or on voting day.
• Canadian citizen
• resident of British Columbia for at least 6 months before registering to vote or on voting day
• resident of the City of Victoria for at least 30 days before registering to vote or on voting day
• not disqualified by any enactment from voting in an election or otherwise disqualified by law

The following are valid identity documents for proving voter identity. At least one document presented to prove identity must include the applicant's signature. If you are registering to vote at a Voting Place, you will be required to present two pieces. Please be prepared to present two of the identity documents noted below:

• BC Driver's Licence
• BC Identification Card
• Photo BC Services Card
• Certificate of Indian Status as issued by the Government of Canada
• Non-photo BC Services Card
• Student card issued by a post-secondary institution
• Owner's Certificate of Insurance and Vehicle Licence issued by ICBC
• BC CareCard or BC Gold CareCard
• Ministry of Social Development and Economic Security Request for Continued Assistance Form  SDES8
• Social Insurance Card
• Canadian Citizenship Card
• City of Victoria Property Tax Notice
• Statement of Employment Insurance Benefits
• BC Government cheque
• Income Tax Assessment Notice
• Canadian Forces Identification
• Old Age Security Identification Card
• Canadian Passport
• Birth Certificate
• Credit card or debit card or statement
• Utility bill
• Library card issued by the Greater Victoria Public Library

The Greater Victoria area is made up of many municipalities, so you may be unsure whether you are a City of Victoria resident or resident of another municipality. Only Victoria residents and non-resident property owners are eligible to vote in the 2020 Victoria municipal by-election in the City of Victoria.

If you are uncertain about your municipality of residence, you can check the CRD Regional Map. A check of your property tax receipt will also provide you with information about your municipality of residence. If you are still uncertain, please contact the Legislative Services office at 250.361.0571 for assistance.

If you own property in Victoria but live elsewhere, you might be eligible to vote in the City of Victoria by-election as a non-resident property elector. The owners must be individuals, not corporations.

In order to be eligible to vote as a non-resident property elector you must satisfy all of the following criteria:

• age 18 or older
• Canadian citizen
• resident of British Columbia for at least 6 months immediately before registering to vote or on voting day
• registered owner of real property in the City of Victoria for at least 30 days immediately before registering to vote or on voting day
• not entitled to register as a resident elector
• not disqualified by any enactment from voting in an election or otherwise disqualified by law
• only persons who are registered owners of the real property, either as joint tenants or tenants in common, are individuals who are not holding the property in trust for a corporation or another trust
• if there is more than one registered owner of the property, only one of those individuals may, with the written consent of the majority of the owners, register as a non-resident property elector

If you are not on the City's Voters List and qualify as a non-resident property elector you may register prior to voting. Registering as a non-resident property elector at the time on voting day requires documentation proving your identity, place of residence and proof of property ownership.

To prove your identity and your eligibility to register, please bring with you:

• Two pieces of personal identification - one with residential address, and one with your signature; and
• Property title deed or current City of Victoria property tax receipt; and
• Consent Form, if the property is owned jointly with other individuals - available at Legislative Services or available as a pdf document below.

If a property is owned in whole or in part by a corporation, you are ineligible to register as a non-resident property elector with regard to that property. There is no corporate vote in BC.

For further information about registering to vote as a non-resident property elector, please contact Legislative Services at 250.361.0571.

The City of Victoria offers eligible voters the opportunity to cast their vote by mail if the voter is unable to attend in person at a voting opportunity on account of:

• A physical disability, illness or injury that affects their ability to vote at another voting opportunity;
• Residents of a care facility; OR
• Absence from the municipality on general voting day and at the times of all advance voting opportunities.

Deadlines to be announced. 

An accessible voting machine will be located at one of the polling stations (location to be announced). A voter with disabilities will be provided with headphones and their preferred selector device (i.e. a hand-held vote selector, paddles, or sip-and-puff) via an audio voting session. The headphones have disposable sanitary coverings.

The election administrator will then initiate the accessible voting session via an LCD screen on the tabulator, select the appropriate ballot style for the voter, and insert the paper ballot into the printer tray.

The voter is then led via audio instructions through the ballot. They will select their ballot choice via their chosen vote selector device. When the voter has finished making their ballot selection, the vote choice will be read back to the voter via the same audio interface, and the voter will have a chance to either confirm or reject the vote confirmation.

To be announced. 

To be announced. 

City of Victoria voters mark a paper ballot that is processed through an electronic vote tabulator that counts the votes cast for each candidate in each section. Election results are generated by the electronic vote tabulators and the paper ballots are retained in the event that a recount is required. Final results will be available on the City's website after the polls are closed on Voting Day.