Provincial legislation gives eligible B.C. residents the right to vote in general local elections and by-elections, subject to additional conditions. Voting rights are granted to citizens based on residency or property ownership. There is no corporate or business vote in local elections. Visit the Elections BC website for more details on who can vote.
Mail Ballot Applications Are Now Being Accepted!
Voter Eligibility
Resident electors
In order to be eligible to vote in general local elections or by-elections as a resident or non-resident property elector, a person must:
- Be 18 years of age or older when they register to vote, or 18 years or older on general voting day;
- Be a Canadian citizen;
- Have been a resident of BC for at least six months immediately before they register to vote;
- Be a resident of the municipality or electoral area on the day they register to vote; and,
- Not be disqualified under the Local Government Act, or any other enactment, from voting in local elections or be otherwise disqualified by law.
Eligible electors who live on a First Nation reserve can vote. Where that person votes depends on whether the reserve is within the jurisdiction of a municipality or a regional district.
Non-resident property electors
When a person lives in one jurisdiction and owns property in one or more other jurisdictions, they may vote once in each of the other jurisdictions where they own property - as long as they meet the voter eligibility requirements.
A non-resident property elector must:
- Be 18 years of age or older when they register to vote, or 18 years or older on general voting day;
- Be a Canadian citizen;
- Have been a resident of BC for at least six months immediately before they register to vote;
- Be the registered owner of real property in the jurisdiction where they intend to vote for at least 30 days immediately before they register to vote; and,
- Not be disqualified under the Local Government Act, or any other enactment, from voting in local elections or be otherwise disqualified by law.
If a person owns a property with one or more other individuals, only one person is eligible to vote as the non-resident property elector for that property. The owner entitled to vote must be designated in writing by a majority of the property owners, using the consent form.
A person cannot vote on behalf of a corporation, or as a non-resident property elector, based on a property owned wholly or in part by a corporation.
Voters Living on Reserve
Eligible Indigenous and non-Indigenous electors living on Reserve are entitled to vote in general local elections. You may be eligible to vote in a regional district electoral area election if you live in an area not included within a municipal boundary. Essentially, where that person votes depends on whether the Reserve overlaps with or is adjacent to a municipality or regional district boundary.
- Learn more about how electors living on Reserve vote in local elections
- Voter's Guide for Electors Living on Reserve Brochure (waiting for updated version)
Voter Ineligibility
Resident electors and non-resident property electors are not eligible to vote in a local election if they:
- Have been convicted and sentenced for an indictable offence and are in custody;
- Have been found guilty of an election offence, such as intimidation or vote-buying; or,
- Do not otherwise meet voter eligibility requirements.
Eligible voters must present two pieces of identification to to provide evidence of their identity and place of residence. One of these items must contain the voter's signature.
For a list of acceptable identification please see the Local Government Elections Regulation.
A person may sign a solemn declaration, at the time of voting, as to their place of residence or identity, or both, if they don't have sufficient identification.
How to Vote
You can choose to vote in one of the following ways:
- In Person: Vote in person on Advance Voting Days or on General Voting Day
- Vote by Mail: Request a Mail Ballot
Advance Voting opportunities will be available on October 7, 10, and 11, 2026, with General Voting Day on Saturday, October 17, 2026.
Voting locations are listed below. Additionally, a map of voting locations is also available.
Locations (8 a.m. – 8 p.m.) Address Voting Opportunity Old Abbotsford Courthouse 32203 South Fraser Way Advance and General Voting Day Abbotsford Exhibition Park - Gate 2
(Drive-Through)*32470 Haida Drive Advance and General Voting Day Abbotsford Middle School 33231 Bevan Avenue General Voting Day Aberdeen Elementary School 2975 Bradner Road General Voting Day Bradner Elementary School 5291 Bradner Road General Voting Day Eugene Reimer Middle School 3433 Firhill Drive General Voting Day Máthxwi Elementary School 33661 Elizabeth Avenue General Voting Day Robert Bateman Secondary School 35045 Exbury Avenue General Voting Day Sema:th Elementary School 36321 Vye Road General Voting Day South Poplar Traditional Elementary School 32746 Huntingdon Road General Voting Day St. John Brebeuf Regional Secondary School 2747 Townline Road General Voting Day Yale Secondary School 34620 Old Yale Road General Voting Day * The Drive-Through location at Abbotsford Exhibition Park - Gate 2, is available to all voters. All curbside voting will also take place at this location.
Applications will be accepted from September 1, 2026 - October 6, 2026.
If your application is complete and you qualify to vote by mail, a mail ballot package will be prepared for distribution in accordance with the preferred option selected on the application.
Mail ballot packages are expected to be available after September 28, 2026. Staff will send further email notification to advise when packages have been mailed or are ready for collection. Please note that for in-person pickup at the Election Office, collection hours are 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday to Friday, excluding statutory holidays. The deadline for in-person collection is 4:00 p.m. on October 16, 2026.
Return deadline
Your completed mail ballot and all required documents must be received by the Chief Election Officer no later than 8:00 p.m. on October 17, 2026. You are responsible for meeting this deadline, regardless of the mailing date or postmark. A postmark is not sufficient.
Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act Notice
The personal information on this form is collected under British Columbia's Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act for purposes related to the General Local and School Trustee Election. Questions about the collection and use of this information may be emailed to foi@abbotsford.ca.