Early voting for Canada’s federal election to decide who will be the next prime minister has started. The general election will be held on September 20th, but advanced polling has started on Friday, September 10th and will continue until Monday, September 13th from 9 am to 9 pm at various designated spots set up by Elections Canada.
The federal election’s debate in English was held yesterday on September 9th, in hopes that those who are undecided prior to advanced polling will have a chance to make up their minds. Many issues were discussed and addressed during the debate such as affordability, climate, COVID recovery, leadership and accountability, and Indigenous reconciliation. However, many criticized the leaders for not being straightforward with their responses. Leaders blamed the debate’s format for not being able to respond accurately.
Many pundits and pollsters are suggesting that the debate didn’t have as much of an impact, as viewership was down and had to compete with other sporting events. The moderator, Shachi Kurl, was commended for managing the debate and trying to stay on track despite the 5-second time frame for responses.
Voter cards were mailed out last week and every eligible Canadian should have received their card by Friday for the first day of advanced polling. The voter card has the appropriate information on where advanced polling stations are located for each riding.
Citizens need their voter card and a piece of ID in order to vote. If you haven’t received your voter card or there is an error/discrepancy on your card, you can call Elections Canada at 1-800-463-6868 or 1-800-361-8935. You can also use the Online Voter Registration Service.