Glossary
Find definitions for election terms.
Advance voting is a set number of days during the election period where you can vote in person before election day using a ballot with a list of candidates.
A ballot is a piece of paper that lists the candidates and their political parties (if applicable) who are running to be a Member of Provincial Parliament in Ontario. To vote for a candidate, mark an X on the ballot in the white circle beside the name of the candidate of your choice.
The blackout period for a general or by-election includes the day before election day and election day.
Political entities are prohibited from running paid advertising, and broadcasters or publishers are prohibited from broadcasting or publishing political advertisements during the blackout period.
A by-election is an election called in an electoral district between general elections to replace a Member of Provincial Parliament who has vacated their seat in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
The campaign period begins the day the writ is issued and ends three months after election day for a general election. Specific restrictions on political financing apply during this period.
A candidate is a person running to be a Member of Provincial Parliament for an electoral district, who has been issued a Certificate of Nomination from the Chief Electoral Officer or Returning Officer during the election period.
This document is a temporary form of ID that can be issued by the executive director of a homeless shelter or of a food bank to an elector who does not have a permanent address.
The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) is an Officer of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, appointed by the Lieutenant Governor to oversee provincial elections in Ontario. The CEO is also responsible for maintaining the Permanent Register of Electors for provincial and local elections in Ontario.
A constituency association, sometimes known as a riding association, is an organization formed in an electoral district to support a political party or an independent member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
Ontario’s election law allows voters to decline their ballot. This is a public process done out loud. The election official will mark “declined” on the back of the ballot. The ballot will not be placed in the ballot box but in an envelope for declined ballots. Declined ballots will be counted after the polls close on election night and will be a part of the official results under “ballots declined by voters”.
An election day, also known as the polling day, is the day that an election is held. An election period ends with election day, which is the last day to vote in an election.
The election period is a 29 day cycle that begins the day the writ is issued and ends on election day.
An elector is a person who is eligible to vote in an Ontario provincial and/or local election.
A geographical area of the province defined in the Representation Act that is represented by a Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. Ontario is currently divided into 124 electoral districts.
A candidate who wants to run as part of a political party must receive an endorsement from the party’s leader. Endorsements are filed by the party leader before close of nominations during the election period and allow the party name to be placed below the candidate’s name on the ballot.
The provincial general election date in Ontario is fixed in the Election Act as the first Thursday in June in the fourth year following a general election.
A provincial general election is when an election occurs in all the electoral districts in the province at the same time. General elections typically take place every four years.
Each electoral district has a local election office, which opens once an election or by-election has been called. Voters can go to the local election office to vote by special ballot or during advance voting. They can also go to the local election office to update, add or remove their information on the voters list.
Majority government is created when the total number of government seats in the house exceeds the total number of opposition seats. The provincial general election usually occurs on the first Thursday in June in the fourth year following a general election.
A marked ballot is a ballot that has an X in one of the circles next to the candidates’ names. Marked ballots will be counted and reported after the polls close on election night and included in the official results as accepted ballots marked for candidate.
When the total number of opposition seats in the house exceeds the total number of government seats. In the case of a minority government, a provincial general election can occur at any time.
A mobile poll is open for part of the day at one location and moves to another location later in the day. Mobile polls are typically located in nursing homes and small, long-term care facilities that do not require 12 hours for voting.
For a candidate’s name to appear on the ballot, they must have their nomination paper approved by the Returning Officer before the day and time listed on the writ as the close of nominations.
A provincial general election that takes place on a date other than the one specified by Ontario’s Election Act. A general election could be a non-fixed date election when there is a minority government or if the government decides to call the election early.
By-elections are also considered non-fixed date elections.
Election results become official once they have been tabled in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, approximately six months after a general election and three months after a by-election.
During official tabulation, the Returning Officer compiles the results for each candidate from the results tabulated by election officials on election night. At the conclusion of the official tabulation, each Returning Officer declares the candidate with the most votes to be elected. Candidates or their designated representatives are invited to official tabulation to observe the proceedings.
A guide sent to every address in Ontario during a general election that contains information voters need to vote including when, where and how to vote.
During a by-election, the guide is sent to every address within the electoral district having the election.
The Permanent Register of Electors for Ontario (PREO), more commonly known as the Register, includes the names and addresses of people who are eligible to vote in provincial and local elections in Ontario.
When a provincial election is called, information from the Permanent Register of Electors for Ontario is used to create the voters list for each electoral district.
A political party is an organization that is registered with Elections Ontario. There is no fee to register a political party.
An electoral district is divided into geographic areas called polling divisions. This is done for the purpose of administering the election. There is at least one voting location for each polling division. Your voting location on election day is determined by your polling division.
When the difference between the number of votes cast for the two candidates with the most votes is less than 25, the Returning Officer must apply to a judge for a recount.
A candidate or any elector in the electoral district may apply to a judge for a recount, for a fee, if they believe that a deputy Returning Officer has improperly counted any ballot or improperly rejected any ballot or made an incorrect statement of the number of ballots cast for any candidate or the Returning Officer has improperly tabulated the votes. Applications for a recount may be refused by the judge.
If a voter marks their ballot with initials or another identifying mark, or marks outside of one of the circles beside the candidates' names, their ballot may be rejected. Rejected ballots will be counted and reported after the polls close on election night and included in the official results as “rejected ballots".
A Returning Officer is the election official who is appointed to administer an election in an electoral district by the Lieutenant Governor in Council (the Cabinet) upon the recommendation of the Chief Electoral Officer. A Returning Officer administers an election in an electoral district.
A satellite office is an additional returning office located in an electoral district. These offices are typically used in electoral districts that cover a large geographic area to improve access to the services provided by a returning office.
A person appointed to represent a candidate at a poll in a voting location to observe the voting and the counting of the ballots. One scrutineer per candidate is permitted for each poll official that issues a ballot to an elector. Any scrutineer who is not eligible to vote cannot challenge the eligibility of an elector.
The Register is a common way of referring to the Permanent Register of Electors for Ontario. It includes the names and addresses of people who are eligible to vote in provincial and local elections in Ontario.
A third party is any person or entity that is not a political party, candidate or constituency association, and that engages in political advertising.
If a voter does not mark their ballot and places it in the ballot box, the ballot will be considered unmarked.
After polls close on election night, unofficial results are reported to give the number of votes cast for each candidate. These do not include poll-by-poll results.
Anyone eligible to vote in an Ontario provincial election can choose to vote by mail. Once a vote by mail application has been approved, that is the only way the elector can vote in that election.
By applying to vote by mail, you are requesting that a voting kit with a write-in ballot be mailed to you. You are responsible for ensuring that the completed write-in ballot is received by Elections Ontario by 6 PM (Eastern Time) on election day.
A voter is an elector who accepts a ballot from an election official.
A card sent to registered voters once an election has been called that has information about when and where to vote.
When a provincial election is called, information from the Permanent Register of Electors for Ontario, commonly known as the Register, is used to create the voters list for each electoral district.
A voting kit includes a write-in ballot where you can write the name of the candidate of your choice, along with envelopes to secure and return your ballot. You will receive a voting kit if you choose to vote by mail, by home visit or through the hospital program.
All write-in ballots must be received by 6 PM (Eastern Time) on election day.
A building or other facility selected by a Returning Officer to be a location where voting takes place. All voting locations must be accessible.
A Writ is the formal, legal document that starts a provincial election in Ontario. The Lieutenant Governor and the Chief Electoral Officer both sign two copies of a Writ for each electoral district. One copy is sent to the Returning Officer in each electoral district, giving them the authority to hold an election. The other copy is filed with the Official Documents of the Ministry of Government and Consumer Services. At the end of the election, the Returning Officer returns the writ to Elections Ontario.