Lack of voter information card no crisis, says Elections Canada

Voter informationcards were scheduled to have all been delivered to homes by now. But if you haven't received one, there are alternative ways to verify that you are registered to vote in the general election, says Elections Canada.

"There is no worry if you didn't receive your information card," saidspokesman Serge Fleyfel of Elections Canada. While he acknowledgedthat "most likely it means that you are not on the electoral register to vote," he saidthat people can double-checkthe voterslist by telephone or online with the federal agency.

However,the system has had glitches and critics across the country. In Yukon, voters were directed to polling stations nearly 600km from home. Others, from British Columbia to Saskatoon to Montreal to Prince Edward Island have reported problems.

Ability to correct errors in advance of voting day isone reasonElections Canada created the online system and has long hours for returning officers, Fleyfel told CBC News.

• Elections Canada pilot aims to make student voting easier

"If you are not registered, you can register online" he told CBC Kitchener-Waterloo onThe Morning Edition."You could also go to the returning officer's office to register," he suggested, "or you could even register on an advance polling day or on election day," he added.

There is an Elections Canada returning officer in each riding for the duration of the election, he said.

Voting dates

You can actually cast a votenowat thereturningofficer's locationby using a special ballot, Fleyfel said. "You can go there and put yourself on the list and vote, right from now." By entering your postal code intoElection Canada's online location tool, you can find out where the office is in your riding.

These local offices are open from:

• 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on weekdays
• 9:00 to 6:00 p.m. on Saturdays
• Noon to 4:00 p.m. on Sundays

If you're planning to vote at an advanced poll or on election day itself, the ID rules are the same.

"First, you have to know where to vote," Fleyfelexplained. You're assigned a polling station based on the postal code ofyour residence, he said. By entering your postal code onto the Elections Canada website, you can find the polling station you've been assigned to, plus the date and hoursof advanced polls in the riding.

Identification required to register at the polling station:

• Certaingovernment-issued photo ID that shows current address (such as driver's licence)or,
• Two piecesof ID from an approved listor,
• Swear an oath. You must show two pieces of name ID and be accompanied by someone on the voterslist in the same district as you.

Students

Students away from home and who have no proof of local residencycould ask for a letter of confirmation of residence from their school or landlord, Flayfelsaid.

Students attending college or university in Waterloo Regionor Londonarea are eligible to take part in a pilot project, he added, that aims to make voting in their home riding easier.

The pilot projectat the University of Waterloo"which is just like areturning office," Fleyfel said,will be open Monday-Thursday Oct. 5-8.

If the project proves successful it could be adopted nationwide in time forthe next federal election, he said.