I won’t be able to vote in our federal election… and neither will tens of thousands other Canadians!
We are citizens who happen to be away from home, traveling, overseas, or in the United States.
Probably more than 100,000 Canadians are away from home internationally at any one time, on the road by car, on bus tours, flying around on long-planned vacations or business trips, or, in my case and thousands of others , on a cruise… all of us with no way to get an “absentee” ballot, as offered by Elections Canada in its much-promoted propaganda advertising.
And unlike so many other truly democratic and modern countries, Canada does not let expatriate Canadians show up at an embassy or consulate anywhere in the world to cast their ballots by showing their passports or other validating documents.
I know that because I approached Elections Canada and told them I will be at sea during almost the entire election campaign, BUT was hoping to vote at a port stop in San Francisco on April 27.
After all, many other countries allow their citizens travelling throughout the world to do just that!
In fact, some countries will even allow eligible voters to designate a proxy back home to vote on their behalf, or will even email them a ballot kit, which can be returned and, once verified, included in the tally … as long as it is postmarked before election voting closes.
That’s the civilized way in 2025 to promote public participation in the voting process.
But not Canada.
Elections Canada’s reply suggested that I could get perhaps a ballot mailed to me in care of a consulate where I would be able to stop by… if I made a private arrangement with that consulate to allow that, but with even the list of candidates finalized only days ago, that would clearly be impossible.
And then there’s another catch …
The mailed return ballot must be RECEIVED in Ottawa by. 6 pm on Election Day!!
Not just postmarked!!! RECEIVED!
Anyone who has travelled outside of Canada knows that it is also virtually impossible to receive mail from anywhere in Canada by Canada Post … and have it returned and arrive in such a short time frame.
In fact, two months ago, I mailed a get well card from Florida to a friend in Vancouver, who had been hospitalized: it took almost 2 weeks for that card to arrive!
Election Canada’s rules and restrictions , in practical terms, disenfranchise far too many, even in a regularly scheduled election.
And in a “snap” election, the “absentee” ballot option is farcical!
Who knows how many tens of thousands of Canadians are being denied their right to vote in this election!
And if this results are close, especially in some hotly contested ridings, those missed ballots could make a difference!
It’s about time, whichever government is elected, initiates a Parliamentary move to have Canada‘s election laws and rules modernized… so that every Canadian can vote at a Canadian embassy or a consulate, no matter where they are in the world!
Our democracy deserves it.
Harv Oberfeld
(Follow @harveyoberfeld.ca on “X” for FREE alerts to new blogs on this site.)
🛑✉️ Outdated voting rules leave thousands of Canadians abroad without a voice! In 2025, we should be able to vote from anywhere — embassies, consulates, or online. Time to modernize our democracy! 🗳️🌍📬 #LetUsVote #Election2025 #CanadianDemocracy
(Response:Exactly! I was really surprised that I could not. I expected that Canada had entered the modern world like other countries that allow their citizens to vote at consulates and embassies. Time for someone to shine the light on that and correct the situation. Ho)
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/canadian-students-sailing-the-north-atlantic-vote-in-federal-election-1.7514501
A group of students on a six month educational sailing expedition were in Portugal when the election was called. One of the teachers guided them through the registration process and they will be voting at the Canadian Embassy in Switzerland.
(Response: Elections Canada did tell me that if I made a private arrangement with the consulate in San Francisco to have my ballot mailed there, or any other address, I could vote that way. However, since I will be passing through there on April 27, itv would still be impossible to vote, since Elections Canada said the consulate cannot process a ballot or submit it… so I would have to do that myself … and the ballot has to arrive in Ottawa by 6 PM on April 28… No way Canada Post is capable of doing anything like that! So I find it interesting that Elections Canada CAN arrange for “special” groups to vote directly at an embassy … but ordinary individuals cannot! There is something really rotten about the current set up. It really has to be investigated and corrected. Remember, this is not just about me… But the 100,000 or more Canadians who at this point are travelling anywhere in the world … and are being disenfranchised! Ho)
And yet, convicted rapists and murderers get to vote in Canada…
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-votes-2019-voting-incarcerated-house-arrest-1.5285711
“Oh!” Canada….
Harvey, again, you are only retired from a paying job that you were good at. You still take the time to write a blog, and in this case, even while on a cruise. This seems like a story that you would have fun pursuing. You don’t need us to help.
Besides we don’t know all the facts. I don’t know what questions you asked Elections Canada or their exact answer. I don’t know your exact circumstances.
I am guessing that you were already on the cruise when the election was called so you couldn’t ask for a mail ballot before you left.
But from Elections Canada. “As soon as an election is called, you can apply to vote by mail. You can also call 1-800-463-6868, visit any Elections Canada office or contact a Canadian embassy, high commission or consulate outside Canada to get a special ballot application form. Contact the office before visiting as electoral services are not available at all offices. Allow enough time for a special ballot voting kit to reach you and for your ballot to travel back to Ottawa by election day.”
I can understand your frustration. Land tours would make it easier to do some of this. Cruising is more difficult. How does mail reach the ship? How do you send letters from a ship etc. How secure is fax or email?
But the simplest question to ask Elections Canada when you get back: What could/should I have done to be able to vote. If the answer is unsatisfactory then pursue it with the press or your MP.
But I do appreciate the article. Your readers are now aware of what to expect when out of the country during an election cycle. By the way, I have voted in a different riding than my own during a provincial election. Went to the Elections BC office. Showed valid ID. Was given a blank ballot. Wrote in the candidate’s name. Put it in an envelope. Done.
(Response: ALL of Elections Canada options require Canadians wanting to vote to either be IN Canada to vote at Elections Canada sanctioned locations or at locations outside the country where a mailed ballot can reach them AND it can be returned to Ottawa by 6 pm Election day. IMPOSSIBLE for almost every travelling Canadian almost anywhere in the world! Anyone who has ever waited for Canada Pist mail from Canada or mailed anything home knows well how impossible that is!!!Surely Canada can do better … the way so many other democracies do.Ho)
Interesting points about voting restrictions for Canadians abroad. Does anyone know if there are current efforts to change these rules? Would be great if voting could be easier for travelers.
(Response: No mention anywhere of even changing the rules, so Canadians can vote abroad if they are on the move. Even I, with 38 years of journalistic experience, was totally unaware of this until I became a victim this year. I had always assume you could voted a consulate or an embassy anywhere in the world! It must be updated so that Canadians can do that, but likely nothing will happen until the media wakes up and starts making an issue of it now that I’ve brought it to their attention. Ho)
Interesting points in the article. I’m curious if there have been any recent efforts to actually change these voting rules for Canadians abroad, or is it still the same old system? Seems like an update is really needed for modern times.
(Response: Same Old system with the same old rules… It has to change … and hopefully some new member of parliament will bring it up as an issue once the election dust settles down. Ho)
We all have anecdotes. I know someone, a senior with chronic pain whose “outings” for the most part are medical. She wanted to vote and I was ready to drive her but she wasn’t sure if it was worth the hassle.
So I went to the Elections Canada office and they told me how she could request a mail ballot on line. It took me about five minutes to help her do that. The most time consuming part was taking a photo of her picture ID and uploading it but I found that very easy compared to other times I have had to upload things. We did this on the weekend and she received her ballot yesterday (Tuesday). I mailed her ballot today.
Pretty efficient and accommodating I would say. So my impression of Elections Canada is positive.
In your case Harvey, I can imagine your frustration because you want to vote and are willing to take time from your holiday to do so. I wonder how many other Canadians on your cruise ship are as upset and as willing to put in the effort you are. To be honest, I would be happy to just sit around the pool.
But here’s the thing. What are people like you supposed to do about it. You say you are retired but you are only retired from a paying job. You write a blog. You sent this post to the Globe and Mail. (I will be interested in knowing what happens with that.) But what next. What more can you or anybody else who cares actually do?
Remember this is something that will not happen often, only during an election and only if you are travelling so maybe once in a lifetime at most. So it is easy for individuals to let it slide. But if you (or somebody else) wants to see if they can make a difference, I would first start with an email to Elections Canada stating your frustration and adding a solution like voting at consulates. And I would cc that email to my MP and maybe another MP to make sure both the Conservatives and Liberals were aware. And if you don’t hear back, or get an unsatisfactory response, then follow up.
This does take time but if it is important then people should take the time. Good luck.
(Response: Since the cruise I am on ends in Vancouver, there are hundreds of Canadians aboard and I can tell you that virtually every one of them that I have spoken to said they would want to vote this time. And something else quite remarkable: the very, very vast majority of them, like me, have taken shore excursions in central and southern America stops, BUT are not taking any shore excursions in the four United States ports we will be stopping in before we get “home“. Canadians do care… at least this time… And it’s a shame that the Canadian Parliament, made up of all parties, has never UNANIMOUSLY made it possible for the hundreds of thousands of expatriates on the move abroad to be able to exercise their vote, like so many other nations have for their citizens. I really urge readers to contact their local and national media outlets (newspapers, TV, radio) and bring this to their attention and suggest it should be a good story for them to pursue! Ho)
Our voting system is so undemocratic and unbalanced. Its especially outrageous that their is very little to no representation at our end in BC. This needs to change. Sometimes I wonder why vote. The worse thing is the main candidates don’t seem to give a darn.
(Response: Everyone who can vote should vote. Because if they don’t, they can be sure that the minority radicals will …and then possess the power to inflict terrible damage for years! Ho)
True.
As I have stated before, Canada is shambling along with a 19th centruy democracy, which is ill suited for the 21st century. What else is shambling along is our all but ossified Bureaucracy at Election Canada.
As with all democracies, it is run by bureaucrats where the “Peter principle” rules supreme.
To refresh everyone the peter principle is: “he Peter principle is a concept in management developed by Laurence J. Peter which observes that people in a hierarchy tend to rise to “a level of respective incompetence”: employees are promoted based on their success in previous jobs until they reach a level at which they are no longer competent, as skills in one job do not necessarily translate to another.”
(Response: I think it is more complicated than that: the bureaucrats respond to the politicians’ directives. It up to Parliament to decide that Canadians should be able to vote at consulates and embassies anywhere in the world, and then the bureaucrats would follow through. However, I wonder if the bureaucrats at Elections Canada have ever even suggested that to them? Ho)
It’s just another example of bureaucrats and politicians being totally inept and out of touch with the world outside their cocoons.
I have a hard time deciding whether it is sheer stupidity, mindlessness, or a desire to make voting as difficult as possible.
In the recent Vancouver by-election, the collective brains of electoral gurus and council, decided that because the last election had a low turn out they could reduce the poling stations by 50%.
Well guess what? The people were so fed up with the Sim-ians and that very shallow, mind-numbing rationale, they turned out in huge numbers, many of whom waited 3 hours to vote.
The response? Oops, unacceptable; easier to ask forgiveness than permission.
While that may not happen again, we can expect something equally ill conceived, next time.
And they congratulate themselves with half a million dollars in restaurant gift cards for good work.
We are such dupes.
(Response: I believe, in the case of Elections Canada, that is just a case of the same people being in charge too long. It either has not occurred to them, or they cannot be bothered to modernize and introduce such radical new technologies as electronic voting by email, or even thinking that Canadians travelling outside the country might want to exercise their democratic rights by simply dropping by an embassy or consulate, as other more modernized nations allow. This is why I believe that change is necessary in government every 10 years or so, because otherwise the whole system and those in charge of it just stagnate… and the rest of us pay the price. Ho)
Mean while back home many people have not received voting cards. In an eastern newspaper under the headline “Elections Canada missed voter card mailing deadline, but says there’s no cause for concern”
Florence Ryan of Elections Canada is quoted as saying “It has proven challenging to identify and secure some polling locations in this general election,” Thus they have not sent out voting cards. No one in our household has received one.
If we have fixed dates for elections perhaps the dates should be adhered to unless there is a dire situation or a failure of government. Trump becoming President and his policies could have been handled by the government of the day. If we had stuck with the October date both elections Canada and individual citizens would have been prepared for the election.
(Response: Of course, Elections Canada is controlled by the laws and regulations approved by Parliament. It’s there that the changes must occur to modernize the entire election system to reflect the reality that hundreds of thousands of Canadians are travelling at any given time … with passports …and MUST be given somewhere to drop by and vote … especially when a snap election is called!
I had a good chuckle when Carney called a snap election.
Govt bureaucrats all across Canada must have tossed their donuts to the ceiling in shock and horror that they would actually have to….work in a timely fashion….
Seems the “missed, delayed, denied” voter card registration is but one example of the sloth in govt….or Canada Post needs a well placed boot in the rear end.
Either way.
Govt as usual.
Carney’s Liberal will change nothing.
Our debt will be higher.
Lawlessness will remain.
The nanny state will tell us what we can say to not offend anyone..
I am guessing they don’t want people with intelligence and money to cast their votes (tongue in cheek LOL) the wrong way so that is the reason!
Now add in the fact that advance polling is Easter weekend and Passover too, I believe. Guess they don’t want the religious folk to vote either. And our polling stations used to be nearby elementary schools. Now they have moved it to a community centre about twenty minutes away. Guess they don’t want the elderly to vote either.
(Response: Clearly Elections Canada must change and be modernized, regardless of who wins this coming election. They really seem to be out of touch with the reality of modern life in Canada… and the hundreds of thousands of Canadians who actually leave the country and don’t scurry back just because the snap election is called! Ho)
You are 100% correct with you complaints.
I used to manage a building that held the Australian Consulate.
They have MANDATORY elections.
The amount of unshaven , hippie, ski bums (male and female) from Whistler that would arrive at our lobby with a confused look on election day was epic.
One can only imaging the bureaucracy that would be created by Elections Canada and Consular officials to deal with (“horrors”)…. an election.
Your election card ( with a Skew code) ….for advanced polling should offer a 1-800 number or a website where you can go to vote.
Everyone has a cell phone…with a camera…Scan the card, your passport, and vote…
One Election Card = One vote.
It really is that simple.
Unfortunately we deal with govt simpletons.
Judging by the polls…no matter if you and i vote Con…..It looks like Carney will win.
Enjoy your cruise and ignore the rabble.
(Response: Voting is a privilege I believe everyone should exercise in the support of democracy … whenever feasible and possible. Readers will know that, since I am retired, usually when I travel, I put the blog on a “break”. However, this time… Due to the election scheduling… I decided to buy the full Internet on a 23 day cruise that I am currently on and shelled out $287 US … just so that I could keep the blog going and the election discussions active . And, as my piece indicated, I even approached Electuobs Canada trying to figure out if I could find and take a taxi over to vote at our consulate in any of the port stops. How appalling that is not possible under Canadian rules! And then it occurred to me: the same dilemma must be facing more than 100,000 other Canadians who are also travelling and not in some stationary location where they could get a ballot mailed to them through Canada Post and then return it in time to be counted. That is ridiculous … and MUST be changed! If other countries can do it … so can Canada! Hi)
I vote for Harvey to start a writing campaign to force this change through Parliament!
(Response: I’m retired! 😁 However, I did forward a copy of it to the Globe and Mail as a suggested story topic. Perhaps readers here should forward it to their favorite local or national news outlets and suggest they too do stories about this huge gap in our democratic setup? By the way, there are several hundred Canadians on board this small ship (only 1,900 passengers) which ends in Vancouver… and I haven’t found anyone who was able to vote before leaving home! And that’s just one fairly large group on one ship who are travelling who have been disenfranchised! Think about how many there are travelling everywhere in the world who would go to an embassy or consulate and vote … if they could! Ho)