Quebec Elections: How to Vote on Campus

On October 3rd, millions of Quebecers will go to their respective polling stations. All Concordia classes are consequently canceled in accordance with the Quebec Election Act.

Concordia staff and faculty will be relieved of their duties at 4:00 p.m., giving them plenty of time to cast their ballots. Unfortunately, on election day, no one — including students — has the opportunity to vote on campus.

However, there is a workaround! The provincial government is tasking CEGEPs and universities with providing facilities for those eligible to cast their ballots from campuses ahead of the Oct. 3 general election.

The early voting takes place in the atrium of the JW McConnell Building, commonly referred to as the Library Building. The dates are as follows: 27.09. and 28.09. from 09:30 a.m. to 08:00 p.m. and 29.09. from 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

To accommodate the change in schedule, the classes that were scheduled to take place on October 3rd will take place on October 12th. Any lessons students would have missed that Monday will be carried over to the following Wednesday schedule.

But who is entitled to vote? Readers may wonder. To cast your vote on October 3rd, you must be a Canadian citizen at least 18 years old. Also, you must have lived in Quebec since at least April 3 of this year. They must not have been deprived of the right to vote or live under guardianship. If you want to vote on campus, you must live in the Westmount-Saint-Louis neighborhood.

Most importantly, your name and home address are on the electoral roll. The deadline to add your name is September 29, just four days before the election. You must go to your Electoral Officer’s office in person to register your name. Those registering just this week will be barred from voting on campus as the deadline to register for early voting was September 19.

If you make it to the polling station, you will need government-issued ID. Quebec driver’s licenses, health insurance cards, Canadian passports, status cards and Canadian Forces ID cards are acceptable.

If you don’t have one of these to identify yourself on the voter roll, you have three options. Either bring someone who can certify your identity under oath, present two documents with your name and photograph, or bring two documents with your name, address and date of birth.

Finally, remember that polling stations close at 8 p.m. on Election Day.

This article originally appeared in Volume 43, Issue 3, published September 27, 2022.