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Accessible Voting

Elections Alberta strives to make voting accessible for all electors by locating voting places throughout the province, providing barrier-free access to voting places and returning offices, offering multiple voting options, and providing accessibility tools at voting places. Electors may also bring their own devices to use at a voting place to assist them in reading or marking their ballot.

Barrier-Free Access

Elections Alberta selects voting locations with accessibility in mind. We work to ensure as many voting locations as possible provide or can be modified to provide barrier-free access.

When determining if a site is barrier-free, the following criteria must be met:

  • At least one accessible parking spot must be available in reasonable proximity to the voting place entry;
  • The surface of the parking area must be firm and level;
  • Pathways to the building, ramps, and any interior corridors must be at least 36 inches wide;
  • Doorways must be at least 32 inches wide and equipped with easy open devices or have available staff to open the doors for electors;
  • The entrance to the building must be accessible by a level pathway or via ramp;
  • Provided ramps must not have a steep incline, have a non-slip surface, and provide a smooth transition from the pathway to the ramp;
  • All pathways, hallways, and the voting room must free of protruding objects; and
  • The room used for voting must be accessible either by an exterior door via level access, or an elevator or ramp when level access cannot be provided.

Information on voting locations accessibility is included on Where to Vote Cards delivered to electors’ residences. When locations are deemed to be not accessible, additional information will be available on the Where to Vote website regarding the reasons the site not accessible.

Electors who are unable to access their assigned voting place on Election Day may:

  • Choose an voting advance location in their electoral division which may provide better accessibility; or
  • Request a special ballot by mail, to vote from anywhere.

Visual Support

Elections Alberta offers reasonable accommodations to voters with a visual impairment. Electors may vote independently, use assistive tools, or, vote with help provided by a family member, a friend, or an election officer.

We provide:

  • A large-print ballot poster behind the voting screens;
  • The use of a Canadian National Institute of Blind (CNIB) magnifying sheet; and,
  • The use of a voting template.

We encourage electors to bring their own assistive tools as long as their use does not disrupt other voters or compromise the secrecy of the vote. For example, you can use your cell phone camera to provide light or magnification, or other supportive applications on your device that can provide specific assistance.

Support With Reading or Marking the Ballot

Electors who need help to read or mark the ballot may be assisted by an election officer at the voting location or may bring a friend or family member to assist them.

All people providing this assistance must take an oath confirming they will:

  • mark the ballot as directed by the elector, and
  • maintain the secrecy of the elector’s choice.

Language Support

Elections Alberta provides translated information on the voting process, eligibility to vote, how to mark a ballot, and voting options in 27 languages. See Assistance in Your Language for the available voting guides translations. All voting locations will have a printed copy of these guides, as well as printed elector eligibility posters and voting instructions in the 27 languages.

Where we cannot offer a specific translation, we depend on your local community for support. Sometimes this means we rely on the people we have hired to speak the same language as you. Other times, this means we rely on your family or friends to translate for you.