Voter Information
To vote in a local (or school election) you must be a resident elector or a non-resident property elector at the time of voting. Registration for voters will occur on voting days, so please be prepared for waits.
Resident Elector Qualifications:
- Be 18 years or older on General Voting Day;
- Be a Canadian Citizen;
- Be a resident of BC for at least 6 months before General Voting Day;
- Be a resident of the municipality, electoral area, or trustee electoral area on General Voting Day; and
- Not be disqualified under the LGA, VC, SA or any other enactment from voting in an election or be otherwise disqualified by law.
Non-Resident Property Elector Qualifications:
- Not be entitled to register as a resident elector of the municipality or electoral area in question (i.e., cannot vote as both a resident and non-resident property elector in the same municipality or electoral area);
- (For a school district election, not be entitled to register as a resident elector of a trustee electoral area of the school district (a person cannot vote in more than one trustee electoral area or as both a resident and a non-resident property elector in the same school trustee election)(A person may be registered as an elector in only trustee electoral area for any school district));
- Be 18 years of age or older on the day of General Voting Day;
- Be a Canadian citizen;
- Have been a resident of BC for at least 6 months immediately before General Voting Day;
- Have been a registered owner of real property in the subject municipality, regional district electoral area or trustee electoral area for at least 30 days immediately before General Voting Day (September 17, 2026);
- Not be disqualified under the LGA, SA, or any other enactment from voting in an election or be otherwise disqualified by law.
- If, based on land title records, more than one individual owns the property, only one owner can register and that person must have the written consent of a majority of the individual owners (The majority includes the person registering to vote). Form 7-3 Non-Resident Elector Consent Form must be submitted at time of registration/voting.
On Voting Day, Resident Electors and Non-Resident Property Electors will be required to provide:
- Full name;
- For resident electors, residential address and mailing address, if the mailing address is different;
- For non-resident property electors, the address or legal description of real property in respect of which the person is registering and the mailing address, if different;
- For non-resident property electors, Form 7-3 Non-Resident Elector Consent Form, if applicable (see above);
- Either your birthdate or the last 6 digits of your social security number; and
- Two (2) pieces of identification with at least one (1) of which includes your signature.
Acceptable identification includes:
- BC Driver’s Licence;
- BC Identification Card;
- BC Care Card or BC Gold Care Card;
- BC Services Card with or without a photo;
- Vehicle Insurance papers;
- Social Insurance Number Card;
- Citizenship Card;
- Property Tax notice;
- Credit car or debit card; or
- Utility bill.
RESOURCES:
Voter’s Guide to Local Elections in BC
The Voter’s Guide is available in other languages (Chinese, Farsi, French, Korean, Punjabi): https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/governments/local-governments/governance-powers/general-local-elections/voting-local-elections
