Richmond advance voting sets a record with 17,464 ballots cast

Richmond recorded 17,464 voters across five advance voting days—Oct. 3, 7, 8, 9 and 10—for the 2026 Richmond General Local and School Election. The City said Oct. 13 that turnout was up 141 per cent from the 7,247 people who voted in advance in 2022. General Voting Day is Saturday, Oct. 17, with polls open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The Richmond Elections Office encourages eligible residents to vote and recommends checking registration, the assigned voting location and voting arrangements in advance. Voters can use the “Am I on the Voters List?” online tool to check their registration. First-time registrants must provide two pieces of identification that together show their name and residential address; one piece must include a signature. The tools and information are at https://richmond.ca/electionservices/voters/SearchVotersList.aspx and https://www.richmond.ca/city-hall/elections/electionfaqs.htm.

Voters can use the “Where Do I Vote?” tool to find their General Voting Day location at https://richmond.ca/electionservices/votingOpportunities/SearchVotingPlace.aspx. There are 38 locations across the city, and voters must attend the location assigned to their voting division. Candidate profiles, written by the candidates themselves, are available online and in the Voter’s Guide, which was mailed to residents and is also online: https://www.richmond.ca/city-hall/elections/candidateslist.htm.

Residents are encouraged to share election information with friends and family and may share their voting experiences on social media. To protect privacy and the election process, audio and video recording and photography are not permitted inside voting locations. Selfies and photos are permitted outside. Each eligible voter may choose one mayoral candidate, up to eight council candidates and up to seven school trustee candidates.

Results will be posted at https://www.richmond.ca/city-hall/elections.htm after voting ends at 8 p.m. on Oct. 17. Voters can request a mail ballot package by calling 604-276-4100 until 3 p.m. on Oct. 15. Online requests and returns through Canada Post are no longer available. Voters may also pick up a mail ballot at City Hall and return the completed ballot to any voting location on General Voting Day. Details are at https://www.richmond.ca/city-hall/elections.htm or by calling the Elections Office at 604-276-4100.

The City aims to make voting locations accessible to people who use wheelchairs, walkers and mobility scooters, though some locations are not fully accessible. Curbside voting will be available at every location, with signs explaining what to do when voters arrive.

Voting instructions at voting locations will be available in French, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese and Punjabi. Online versions of the Voter’s Guide are also available in those languages: French at https://www.richmond.ca/__shared/assets/voter_guide_french79832.pdf; Simplified Chinese at https://www.richmond.ca/__shared/assets/voter_guide_simp_chinese79830.pdf; Traditional Chinese at https://www.richmond.ca/__shared/assets/voter_guide_trad_chinese79829.pdf; and Punjabi at https://www.richmond.ca/__shared/assets/voter_guide_punjabi79831.pdf. Voters who need language assistance may bring a family member or friend to translate, or ask an election official for help.