What to do if you spot a voter information card error

REGINA – Elections Canada has been receiving reports of voter information cards with errors, including some in Saskatchewan.

The agency said people shouldn’t worry if they detect an error on their card. Voters are urged to call the toll-free number provided and report the mistake so you can be sent a replacement card.

One of the common causes of errors is when riding boundaries are redistributed.

“So it’s pretty natural that when they redraw the maps that sometimes these errors happen and people get sent to polling places that are further away than they normally would be,” said Elections Canada spokesperson James Hale.

Elections Canada says it times the mailing of voter registration cards so that most electors receive them by Oct. 1. With the sheer amount of cards that are mailed out Hale said a few mistakes are bound to happen.

“The returning officers have to secure about 20,000 different voter locations, and they correlate those voter locations with elector addresses. Then those 26.5 million voter information cards are printed and they’re mailed. It’s a huge undertaking and it’s pretty normal for some errors to occur in the process.”

You do not need a voter information card to cast a ballot, just something to prove your address – along with a piece of government issued photo-identification. You can also find out where to vote online.