The Electoral System of Canada

Main activities

Managing field operations

Preparing, managing and delivering field operations for electoral events are central to the mandate of Elections Canada. Among a multitude of operational tasks, the main ones are:

• manage the supply of goods and services for an election, from ballot boxes to phone connections for returning offices



• print, assemble and ship all election materials to every riding at the appropriate time



• develop the policies, procedures, manuals, forms and tools that facilitate registering voters, voting and managing the election



• administer the Special Voting Rules and accessibility programs that make it possible for all those who have the right to vote to exercise that right



• oversee the appointment and training of returning officers, assistant returning officers and automation coordinators, who administer the election in each electoral district



• hire and train field liaison officers, who support returning officers in their work and provide guidance and advice during and between elections



• oversee and coordinate the administration of electoral events at the riding level



• manage the registration of electors during an electoral event



• manage the voting process itself

Maintaining a permanent register of electors

Since 1997, Elections Canada maintains the National Register of Electors, a permanent list of Canadians who are qualified to vote. The Register contains each elector's name, sex, date of birth, mailing and residential address, electoral district and polling division, and is updated using federal and provincial or territorial data. It currently (in 2007) lists over 23.1 million electors.

The Register is used to produce the preliminary lists of electors and the voter information cards sent to registered electors at the beginning of an election period. The main tasks involved in its management are to:

• update the Register with data from federal, provincial and territorial sources, and information provided by electors during and between elections



• produce updated lists of electors each year for members of Parliament and, if requested, for registered parties



• develop and maintain partnerships with provincial, territorial and municipal electoral commissions to share data and monitor data quality



• coordinate efforts to develop better registration methods

The personal information of electors in the Register is protected under the Canada Elections Act and the Privacy Act. The Canada Elections Act allows an elector to remove his or her name from the Register by notifying the Chief Electoral Officer in writing.

The limited information obtained from federal data sources (the Canada Revenue Agency and Citizenship and Immigration Canada) may be gathered only with the consent of the elector concerned, and may be used for electoral purposes only. Improper use of electoral information is an offence.

An elector who does not want his or her personal information to be shared with other jurisdictions for electoral purposes may notify the Chief Electoral Officer in writing. Opting out of the Register or declining to share one's information in the Register does not affect the elector's right to vote.

In addition to the National Register, Elections Canada also maintains a register of electors who are temporarily living away from Canada; this register includes, among other information, their Canadian and foreign addresses. Once an election is called, some 10,000 Canadian citizens abroad are mailed an application to register for the special ballot and vote by mail.

Electoral geography

Making it possible for some 23 million electors to vote within a 12-hour period is no easy task. To ensure smooth operations, each elector is assigned to one of the more than 65,000 polling divisions across Canada and directed to the polling station nearest his or her place of ordinary residence. Efficient management of this process relies heavily on keeping electoral maps and geographic tools up to date and accurate. Elections Canada carries out various tasks in this area:

• It maintains the National Geographic Database jointly with Statistics Canada. The National Geographic Database contains data on streets in Canada, including their names and address ranges and many geographical features. It is used by Elections Canada for electoral operations and by Statistics Canada for census operations.



• It maintains the Electoral Geography Database, which is derived from the National Geographic Database and contains cartographic representations of federal electoral districts, with all polling divisions and advance polling districts. This database is used for creating the thousands of maps necessary for elections. It is also used to assign voters to the correct electoral districts and polling divisions based on their addresses. This process is known as "georeferencing"; it provides precise geographic coordinates with links to Elections Canada's geographic databases.



• It plans and maintains the digitized Geographic Information System to produce both printed and digital electoral maps, as well as a variety of other geography-related documents.



• It provides technical support and digitized mapping tools to the electoral boundaries commissions.

Operational and strategic planning

Elections Canada must be ready at all times to deliver an electoral event, whether it be a by-election, a general election or a federal referendum. To maintain this state of readiness, the agency plans and coordinates all of its activities thoroughly, and ensures that it is able to adjust quickly as political events unfold.

Elections Canada has developed numerous customized planning tools to prepare for upcoming electoral events and manage the timely deployment of services at the issue of the writs. A typical electoral event readiness plan charts more than 800 high-level, interrelated activities that must all be completed before an election. Advanced management information systems help to monitor the progress of an electoral event, at both national and local levels, against pre-set targets and benchmarks.

Strategic planning is also important to coordinate the development of longer-term organizational strategies that address emerging national trends and improve election management.

Providing legal services

Considering the legal environment that surrounds and defines the mandate of Elections Canada, the agency must have built-in capacity for interpreting electoral laws and supplying legal advice. In dealing with electors, as well as with the various political entities, the agency must be able to:

• advise the Chief Electoral Officer on legislative proposals and on the interpretation of the electoral legislation



• provide advice on matters related to the agency's work



• provide information to assist political entities and the public in understanding and complying with the law



• maintain Elections Canada's relationship with the Commissioner of Canada Elections and the Broadcasting Arbitrator

Conducting research and analysis

The functions of the Chief Electoral Officer require constant connection with the broader environment, including Parliament, the academic community, the media and the international scene, to:

• refine knowledge of electoral matters to support the Chief Electoral Officer in developing his recommendations for amendments to the Canada Elections Act, and advising parliamentarians on electoral matters



• conduct regular information gathering and analysis to support strategic planning, monitor progress in delivering electoral events and to complete corporate projects



• establish links and partnerships with scholars, research institutes, provincial and national bodies involved in electoral matters and relevant international organizations, with a view to constant improvements in election delivery



• disseminate information to various clients by various means, including the agency's Web site, electronic mailing lists and Electoral Insight magazine

Implementing outreach and communication programs

The Canada Elections Act mandates the Chief Electoral Officer to implement public education and information programs to make the electoral process better known to the public, particularly to those persons and groups most likely to experience difficulties in exercising their democratic rights. In carrying out this responsibility, Elections Canada:

• develops and implements the tools and messages used to inform Canadian citizens in Canada and abroad about their right to vote and how to exercise it, through public and media relations, advertising and educational activities



• designs, tests and carries out multi-pronged national advertising campaigns informing electors about how, where and when to register and vote



• encourages returning officers to appoint, where warranted, community relations officers to help identify and address the needs of individual communities with significant Aboriginal, youth, ethnocultural or homeless populations, and encourage their participation in the electoral process



• consults and maintains contact with Aboriginal, youth, ethnocultural and special needs groups to make sure that we provide the information and services they need



• maintains a Web site, with a live feed of voting results on election night and special sections dedicated to youth, Aboriginal electors, ethnocultural communities and the various political entities



• answers questions from the public during and between elections by toll-free telephone (1-800-463-6868), through the Web site (www.elections.ca) and by mail



• produces and distributes publications in print, electronic and video formats: news releases and advisories, legislative reports, information documents and educational kits

Overseeing political financing

Since the reform brought by Bill C-24 in January 2004, which changed political financing rules and extended regulation to electoral district associations, nomination contestants and leadership candidates, the agency's responsibilities in the area of political financing are to:

• review for compliance with the Canada Elections Act and publish:



• annual financial returns and statements of assets and liabilities of registered political parties and their registered electoral district associations



• quarterly financial returns from registered parties that receive quarterly allowances



• registered party returns on general election expenses



• leadership contestant registration; weekly and campaign returns



• nomination campaign returns for contestants who receive or spend $1,000 or more



• candidate electoral campaign returns for general or by-elections



• third party election advertising returns



• review the financial returns of registered referendum committees after a referendum



• administer the partial reimbursement of election expenses to eligible candidates (after a by-election or general election) and to parties (after a general election)



• administer quarterly allowance payments to registered political parties



• administer audit subsidies payable to auditors for candidates and registered associations

In addition to its political financing responsibilities, the agency pays election workers and suppliers and manages its own internal finances. Frequent legislative changes demand responsive fiscal planning to take new tasks into account and streamline financial policies and systems. Accountability stems from internal audit operations, performance measurement and corporate reporting, including reports on plans and priorities and performance reports that are presented to Parliament.

Efficiency through information technology

Computers and networking are now integral to the agency's management and election delivery, and Elections Canada has developed a number of customized applications for its needs. Among other IT uses, Elections Canada:

• manages and supports electronic networks, intranets and computer hardware and software both at its office in Ottawa and in the field throughout electoral events



• maintains and improves applications supporting the National Register of Electors, Electoral Geography Database as well as several other tools that support real-time monitoring of and reporting on electoral events



• develops applications supporting key services, such as the Voter Information Service, real-time broadcasting of election results and on-line reporting for political entities



• develops and supports applications used by registered political parties, registered electoral district associations, candidates, nomination contestants and leadership contestants to complete and submit financial returns required by the Canada Elections Act

Upholding international co-operation

The Canadian electoral system is now recognized internationally as a model for countries that are trying to implement and consolidate their own democratic institutions.

As a recognized supporter of democracy throughout the world, Canada is in a position to share electoral knowledge with emerging and established democracies, and to offer help to countries that request advice and assistance in planning and conducting free and fair elections. Since 1980, Elections Canada has participated in more than 400 international democratic development missions in some 100 countries.

This support is usually provided through multilateral programs and takes many forms: pre-election assessment, technical advice, training and civic education, election monitoring and provision of election materials. Elections Canada's missions range from sending a single expert to address one aspect of the electoral process, to assembling multi-year, multi-country teams to undertake in-depth and ongoing analysis and assistance, including observation and peer support covering all areas of the electoral process.

The agency also welcomes visitors, including election administrators, parliamentarians and other civil society members from around the world and briefs them about Canada's electoral system and how it is managed. In addition to sharing experience with evolving democracies, Elections Canada participates in the development of international standards and knowledge related to every aspect of democratic elections.

The principle of peer support guides the international work of Elections Canada. It provides such support to electoral management bodies before, during and after elections, and helps them develop and strengthen the institutional frameworks, skills and autonomy that are crucial building blocks of electoral democratic development.

This approach grew from the partnership between Elections Canada and its colleagues at the Instituto Federal Electoral (IFE) in Mexico since 1993. More recently, it is exemplified in two multilateral election monitoring missions, the International Mission for Iraqi Elections (IMIE) and the International Mission for Monitoring Haitian Elections (IMMHE), both chaired by the Chief Electoral Officer. The IMIE worked closely with the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq (IECI) through three electoral events in 2005 – the January 30 elections for the Transitional National Assembly, the October 15 constitutional referendum and the December 15 Council of Representatives elections.

In Haiti, the IMMHE worked with the Conseil électoral provisoire through the first and second rounds of the Haitian presidential and legislative elections on February 7 and April 21, 2006, respectively. This mission was succeeded by the Canadian Mission for Accompanying Haitian Elections (CMAHE), also chaired by the Chief Electoral Officer. The CMAHE provided monitoring and advice for the Haitian December 3, 2006, local, municipal and follow-up legislative elections.

Elections Canada's missions seek to identify the choices available to each host country in light of its specific challenges and opportunities, and help implement options that best meet a country's democratic development needs while respecting the culture and history from which it emanates.

The federal electoral process

Even if candidates and political parties get the most visibility during elections, they are not the only actors involved. Behind the scenes, thousands of election workers play an essential role in making sure that each electoral event is fair and well managed. On election day, more than 190,000 temporary employees work at some 60,800 polling stations in the nearly 15,000 polling places across the country. A returning officer in each of the 308 electoral districts coordinates the activities of these workers. Around 30 field liaison officers provide assistance to returning officers in their duties in coordination with Elections Canada and liaise with the media in the field. Based on local needs, community relations officers are hired to reach out to target groups, namely youth and students, Aboriginal groups, ethnocultural communities and homeless people.

Preparing for a general election

Because the length of time between elections is not a set period, Elections Canada must always be ready to deliver a general election. The agency updates the National Register of Electors year-round, trains new returning officers and prepares tonnes of supplies. In the field, returning officers complete pre-event assignments such as setting up polling divisions and selecting potential locations for polling stations, among many other tasks.

The National Register of Electors

Elections Canada uses the National Register of Electors to produce the preliminary lists of electors and voter information cards for a general election, by-election or referendum. Once they have signed an agreement with Elections Canada, provincial, territorial and municipal electoral organizations and school boards may also use information from the Register to produce their voters lists.

About 17 percent of voter information changes every year, so the Register is continually updated, with the individual's consent, with data from the Canada Revenue Agency, Canada Post, and Citizenship and Immigration Canada. Other sources include provincial and territorial registrars of motor vehicles and vital statistics, electoral agencies in British Columbia and Quebec, and final voters lists from provincial and territorial elections.

Returning officers

The key election officer in each of the 308 electoral districts is the returning officer. Appointed on merit by the Chief Electoral Officer through an open and competitive process, federal returning officers work under the general supervision of the Chief Electoral Officer. They receive support from the 30 field liaison officers who provide functional leadership under the direction of the Chief Electoral Officer.

Legally, a returning officer need only be a Canadian citizen, 18 years of age or older, and living in the electoral district where he or she is appointed. In practice, however, the returning officer must be much more. The job is demanding and the duties varied. Along with serious commitment, detailed knowledge of the federal electoral process and a wide range of management skills are essential.

Returning officers must abide by a code of professional conduct and must abstain from all politically partisan activities, both during and between election and referendum periods. They are appointed for a 10-year term and remain in the position for that time (unless the electoral district changes as a result of redistribution) unless they move out of the electoral district, resign or are removed for cause by the Chief Electoral Officer.

Setting up polling divisions

To facilitate the vote, every electoral district must be divided into polling divisions, each serving an average of some 400 electors² and a voters list must be drawn up for each of these divisions. Polling divisions are also used to direct electors to their specific voting location. There are some 65,000 polling divisions across the country.

Selecting locations for polling stations

Returning officers select convenient and accessible locations for polling stations, for both election day and advance voting. Polling stations are usually set up in well-known central locations with level access, such as community centres and schools.

Preparing supplies

Staff at Elections Canada in Ottawa develop administrative procedures and prepare maps, instruction kits, forms, information materials, ballot paper and boxes, and other supplies that will be needed to conduct an election. Early shipments are sent to returning officers' homes and staging posts across the country if an election is thought to be imminent.

Launching an election

For a general election, the Governor General (at the request of the Prime Minister) dissolves Parliament, and the Governor in Council (the Governor General acting on the advice of Cabinet) sets the date of the election and the date by which returning officers must return the writs. A writ is a formal document directing a returning officer to conduct an election in his or her electoral district, and on which the returning officer writes the name of the winning candidate after election day. By law, the time between the issue of the writs and election day must be at least 36 days. In practice, general elections usually last 36 days. An exception was the 39th general election, which included the 2005 Christmas and New Year holiday period and lasted 55 days.

Issuing the writs

Once advised of the election, the Chief Electoral Officer sends a notice to each returning officer, directing him or her to rent office space, open a returning office and provide the services that enable electors to exercise their right to vote. At the same time, the writs of election are being printed, giving the dates for election day and for the close of nominations. After signing the writs, the Chief Electoral Officer sends one to each returning officer, who then publishes a notice of election informing voters of the important dates and other details.

Opening the local returning offices

On receiving the notification, each returning officer rents space and furniture in an accessible location in his or her electoral district, and opens an office. This office is open during the hours set by the Chief Electoral Officer, and serves as the centre of field operations for the duration of the election. Staff must be hired and trained immediately, because the office is expected to begin operations without delay.

Revising the preliminary lists

Immediately after the election is called, Elections Canada prepares the preliminary lists of electors for each riding, using information from the National Register of Electors, and sends the lists to the returning officers. The returning officers mail a voter information card to every registered elector soon afterwards. Each card confirms the name and address of the elector, provides information about when and where to vote and how to contact the returning officer, and indicates whether the polling station has level access.

Since 2004, Elections Canada also sends a reminder card to every household in Canada. The card asks voters to contact Elections Canada if they have not received a voter information card, and lists the dates for voting in advance, on election day and by special ballot, as well as Elections Canada's telephone and teletypewriter, or "TTY," numbers and Web site address.

Between the beginning of the election period and the sixth day before election day, the lists of electors are revised as needed by adding, deleting and correcting the information they contain. If an elector has moved within the same electoral district, he or she can have the information changed over the telephone. Voters can also register in person at the advance polls and on election day, with proof of identity and residence. The returning officer prepares revised lists of electors to be used at the advance polls, and a second set of revised lists, called the official lists, to be used on election day.

Returning officers also carry out a targeted revision of selected areas of their electoral district. During the revision period, returning officers send pairs of revising agents to visit electors door to door in areas where electors are less likely to appear on the preliminary voters list at their current addresses. These areas include, but are not limited to, new residential developments, college and university residences, high-mobility neighbourhoods (including off-campus student housing) and long-term-care facilities. This targeted revision aims to increase elector registration levels and improve awareness of the federal revision process.

Nominating candidates

After the returning officer publishes the notice of election and before the close of nominations at 2:00 p.m. on the 21st day before election day, the witness for each prospective candidate submits the nomination papers, including the name, address and signature of at least 100 electors (or 50 electors in large and sparsely populated ridings) who support the nomination, along with a $1,000 deposit, to the returning officer. The returning officer then has 48 hours to verify that the documentation is complete and complies with the Canada Elections Act before confirming or refusing to accept the candidacy. Following a refusal, corrected papers may be resubmitted until the close of nominations.

Registering political parties

A political party must be properly registered with the Chief Electoral Officer if it wants to issue tax receipts for contributions, be eligible to receive quarterly allowances and partial reimbursements of its election expenses and have the party's name appear on the ballots under its candidates' names. An eligible party becomes registered when it endorses at least one candidate in a general election or by-election, so long as its application for registration was made with the Chief Electoral Officer at least 60 days before the writs were issued.

Voting

There are a number of ways to vote. The most common way is at the polls on election day. Voters can also cast their ballots at an advance poll, or they can vote by special ballot, either at the office of the returning officer or through the mail. As additional services, Elections Canada provides mobile polls for voters living in chronic care institutions and, in certain cases, bedside voting by special ballot for voters in acute care hospitals. In exceptional circumstances – where a voter is registered for a special ballot but cannot go to the office of the returning officer or mark the ballot because of a disability – an election officer can go to the voter's home to help mark and receive the ballot in the presence of a witness.

Ordinary polls

This is the method of voting used by the vast majority of voters. During the hours of voting on election day, electors go to the polling station indicated on their voter information cards, have their names crossed off the list and go behind a voting screen to mark a ballot.

An elector who is not registered on the preliminary list of electors can register during the revision period until the 6th day before election day. It is also possible to register on election day at the polling station, by:

• presenting satisfactory proof of identity and residence, or



• making a sworn statement of identity and residence in the presence of another elector already registered in the same polling division. This procedure is known as "vouching"; an elector may vouch for only one other elector

Voting hours on election day

The Canada Elections Act requires polling stations to be open for voting for 12 consecutive hours on election day.

The hours of voting are staggered by time zone, so that a majority of results will be available at approximately the same time across the country. If necessary, the Chief Electoral Officer may modify the voting hours in a riding to make them coincide with the voting hours in other ridings in the same time zone.

Marking the ballot

At the polling station specified on the voter information card, the poll clerk crosses the voter's name off the voters list. The deputy returning officer hands the voter a folded ballot with the initials of the deputy returning officer on the outside.

The voter then re-folds the ballot so that the deputy returning officer's initials are visible and hands it to the deputy returning officer. The deputy returning officer checks the initials and the number shown on the counterfoil, removes the counterfoil and discards it, and returns the ballot to the voter. The voter, or the deputy returning officer at the voter's request, places the folded ballot in the ballot box. The poll clerk then places a mark in the "Voted" column beside the elector's name on the voters list.

Advance voting

Three days – Friday, Saturday and Monday, the 10th, 9th and 7th days before polling day – are designated for advance voting to accommodate electors who know that they will be unable, or do not wish, to vote on election day. Advance polls are open between the hours of noon and 8:00 p.m.

The dates and the location of the designated advance polling station for each elector are indicated on the voter information card. The voting procedure is almost the same as at the ordinary polls.

An elector whose name is not on the revised voters list can register in person at the advance polling station where he or she is entitled to vote by showing satisfactory proof of identity and residence.

Special ballot

The Canada Elections Act provides alternative procedures for voting specifically designed for, but not limited to, electors who:

• reside temporarily outside Canada (less than five consecutive years, with certain exceptions) at the time of an election



• reside in Canada, but might be away from their electoral districts when it is time to vote



• are members of the Canadian Forces



• are incarcerated

Any elector can register to vote by special ballot, at the latest on the sixth day before election day. Application forms are available from returning officers, on the Elections Canada Web site or directly from Elections Canada in Ottawa. Once the registration is accepted, a kit containing a ballot and three envelopes is mailed to the elector. Once registered to vote by special ballot, an elector cannot vote in any other way.

Electors can vote only for a candidate who is running in their own electoral district no matter where they cast and mail their special ballots.

To preserve secrecy, the elector seals the special ballot in the unmarked envelope, puts that sealed envelope in the envelope with the electoral district's name on it, seals this second envelope and puts it in the mailing envelope.

Special ballots can be returned either by mail or by courier. To be counted as valid, special ballots sent from outside an elector's home electoral district must arrive at Elections Canada before 6:00 p.m., Ottawa time, on election day. Those sent from within an electoral district must reach the office of the returning officer in that district before the close of polling stations on election day.

Electors who are in the Canadian Forces or incarcerated also vote by special ballot, using slightly different procedures: the former vote at military bases and the latter in correctional institutions.

Accessibility

The right to vote in Canada is universally guaranteed by the Constitution since the adoption of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982. This has a profound impact on how Elections Canada must approach the delivery of elections; in effect, the agency must ensure that voting is accessible to all citizens over 18. To make the process most accessible to all, the Canada Elections Act provides for a variety of flexible voting methods and entrusts Elections Canada with addressing any obstacles to voting.

All returning offices, all polling stations and all other premises used during an election must have level access. Under exceptional local circumstances, the returning officer may seek specific authorization from the Chief Electoral Officer to use a polling station that lacks level access. Accessibility is indicated on the voter information card, which is sent to every registered elector shortly after the issue of the writs. If the polling station of a voter with a disability is among the very few that cannot offer level access, the voter can request a transfer certificate to vote at another station with level access. During the 39th general election, only 43 (0.2 percent) of the 14,917 ordinary and 2,767 advance polling sites used did not provide level access.

Wherever possible, election officers at polling stations speak both official languages. Interpreters may accompany voters to assist them, if required.

A large-print ballot mock-up and a template help voters with a visual disability to mark their ballots privately. Voters with a disability or who cannot read may, on request, have a deputy returning officer help them to vote, in the presence of a poll clerk. A friend or relative may also assist them.

In special cases, voters with a disability may vote at home in the presence of an election officer and a witness.

The results

Shortly after the polls close on election day, the unofficial results begin to come in to Elections Canada. As the reports arrive from the various polling stations on election night, Elections Canada releases the results to the media for immediate publication or broadcast. Simultaneously, Elections Canada hosts a live feed on its Web site of the unofficial results by riding, by major centre, by province or territory, nationwide and by political party.

Validation of the results

Within seven days of election day (unless exceptional circumstances prevent some ballot boxes from being available on time), each returning officer validates the results by examining the documents relating to the vote count to verify the election night calculations. Only after the validation has been completed can the official voting results be published.

Judicial recounts

A judicial recount is automatically requested by the returning officer and conducted by a judge if the number of votes separating the candidate with the most votes and any other candidate is less than one one-thousandth of the total number of votes cast in that electoral district. A recount may also be conducted if it appears to a judge to whom a request for a recount has been made that an error may have occurred during the count.

If the two top-ranking candidates have each received the same number of votes after a recount, a new election is held in that electoral district.

Election reports

The return of the writs

After the sixth day following the validation of the results (or immediately after a judicial recount), the returning officer records the winning candidate's name on the writ received at the beginning of the election, signs it and returns it to the Chief Electoral Officer.

The Chief Electoral Officer's reports

After each general election, the Chief Electoral Officer must submit three public reports to the Speaker of the House of Commons. The first covers the official voting results by polling division and is published without delay. The second, published within 90 days of the return of the writs, is a report on the election and any activities of Elections Canada since the date of the previous narrative report that the Chief Electoral Officer considers should be brought to the attention of the House of Commons. As soon as possible after a general election, the Chief Electoral Officer also reports on any changes to the electoral legislation that he judges desirable for the better administration of the Act. Elections Canada publishes each of these reports in print form and makes them available on-line at www.elections.ca.

By-elections

When a seat in Parliament becomes officially vacant, the Speaker of the House of Commons must inform the Chief Electoral Officer immediately with a Speaker's warrant. Between the 11th and the 180th day after the Chief Electoral Officer receives this warrant, the Governor in Council must set the date for holding a by-election. Once the date is known, the Chief Electoral Officer issues a writ to the returning officer of the electoral district concerned, directing him or her to hold a by-election on that date. If a general election is called after the by-election writ has been issued and before the by-election is held, the writ for the by-election is considered withdrawn, and the Chief Electoral Officer publishes a notice in the Canada Gazette to that effect.

Conduct of by-elections

By-elections are conducted in almost the same way as general elections, except that the event is held only in specified electoral districts. There are some other differences, for example:

Referendums

Three federal referendums have been held in Canada since Confederation: in 1898, on whether to prohibit the sale of alcohol; in 1942, on compulsory military service (conscription); and in 1992, on the Charlottetown constitutional accord. Under the Referendum Act that came into force just before the 1992 referendum, only questions related to the Constitution of Canada can be asked in a federal referendum.

Federal referendums and elections cannot be held on the same day. The Referendum Act allows the Chief Electoral Officer to adapt the Canada Elections Act by regulation for the purposes of applying it to a referendum.

Calling a referendum

Before the referendum period officially begins, the government submits the text of the question³ to the Leader of the Opposition and to each political party represented by at least 12 members in the House of Commons. After this consultation, which may take a maximum of three days, a notice of a motion for approval of the referendum question is submitted to the House of Commons, which also has a maximum of three days to study the text of the question and vote on it. The House of Commons thereafter informs the Senate of the adoption of the motion; the Senate, in turn, has three days to vote on it.

The referendum period starts officially on the day when the text of the referendum question is approved by the Senate, and ends on polling day. When the text of the question is approved, the Governor in Council has 45 days to issue the proclamation to submit the question to electors, specifying whether it will be put to all Canadian electors, or only to those of one or more provinces. As soon as the proclamation is issued, the Chief Electoral Officer issues writs to the appropriate returning officers, instructing them to conduct a referendum. As for general elections, polling day at a referendum cannot be earlier than the 36th day after the writs are issued.

The Chief Electoral Officer must inform the public of the referendum question and of the manner in which the referendum will be conducted, but may not inform the publicor answer public inquiries with respect to arguments in support of or in opposition to the Yes or No options.

The Chief Electoral Officer must also make the text of the question(s) available in selected Aboriginal languages. For the 1992 referendum, the question was translated into 37 of the 53 Aboriginal languages used in Canada.

Referendum committees and advertising

The Referendum Act defines a "referendum committee" as any person who, or group that, intends to incur referendum expenses over $5,000. All referendum committees must register as such with the Chief Electoral Officer.

In principle, there is no limit to the number of referendum committees. In 1992, for example, 241 referendum committees were established in support of the Yes or No options.

Referendum committees may advertise to support or oppose one side or the other of the referendum issue, but must identify themselves as sponsors in the advertisement. Like political parties at an election, registered referendum committees may apply to the Broadcasting Arbitrator for free broadcasting time. The Broadcasting Arbitrator allocates the broadcasting time available among the registered committees so that the time is allocated equally to committees that support the referendum question and committees that oppose it.

Committees also have the right to appoint one agent to be present at each polling station on polling day. They must report their contributions and expenses to the Chief Electoral Officer, with the names of all persons, entities or groups that contributed more than $250. Referendum committees are not eligible to have their expenses reimbursed.

Voting in a referendum

Electors at the ordinary and advance polls vote by making a clear mark in the circle beside the word "Yes" or "No" on the ballot. The special ballot used for referendums is the same as the one used at the ordinary and advance polls. The word "Yes" or "No" must be written in place of a candidate's name.

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² According to the Canada Elections Act (s. 538), a polling division must contain at least 250 electors.

³ More than one question can be asked in the same referendum.

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