Information for Voters

The 2026 Municipal and School Board Elections will take place on October 26, 2026, across the Province.

The Township of Algonquin Highlands will be utilizing Internet and Telephone Voting. Online and telephone voting will be available anywhere, 24 hours a day, from 9:00 AM on October 16 to 8:00 PM on Voting Day, Monday October 26, 2026. The service provider for internet/telephone voting is Voatz.

Eligible voters may vote by:

• Telephone, by accessing a designated telephone number provided by using a touch-tone telephone but not a rotary dial to cast their vote; OR
• By accessing the internet address provided using a high-speed connection to cast their vote. 

Eligible electors added to the Voters’ List will be mailed, or receive, a Voter Information Letter containing a (PIN) in early October that will be needed in order to vote and contain specific instructions on how to vote.

Elections Ontario became responsible for maintaining the register of electors for municipal and provincial elections in Ontario in January of 2024.   You can register, confirm you are on the list, that all your information is accurate, or update your information here. 

You can register and/or confirm your information is correct with Elections Ontario only up until August 12, 2026.  After August 12, 2026, please check back for information on how to confirm you are on the voters list.

If you school support is incorrect you will need to update this information with the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) by June 1, 2026.  Please see information in the below FAQ for further information on MPAC and updating school support.

NOTE: If you reside in Algonquin Highlands, please ensure your property address postal code has been updated to K0M 1S0 in order to receive your Voter Information Letter in October! You can update your postal code here. 

Property owners and tenants should review their school support designation, and if needed update it by June 1, 2026, to ensure the information is correct and included on the Voters’ List.  You can review and update your school support by visiting MPAC's website here.

Voters are required to show proof of their identity and qualifying address. Common forms of identification that are used include an Ontario Driver’s Licence or Ontario Photo Card.

You must present one of the following documents showing your name and qualifying address in the Township of Algonquin Highlands: 

• Ontario driver’s licence
• Ontario Health Card (photo card)
• Ontario Photo Card
• Ontario motor vehicle permit (vehicle portion)
• cancelled personalized cheque
• mortgage statement, lease or rental agreement relating to property in Ontario
• insurance policy or insurance statement
• loan agreement or other financial agreement with a financial institution
• document issued or certified by a court in Ontario
• any other document from the government of Canada, Ontario or a municipality in Ontario or from an agency or such a government
• any document from a Band Council in Ontario established under the Indian Act (Canada)
• income tax assessment notice
• child tax benefit statement
• statement of employment insurance benefits paid T4E
• statement of old age security T4A (OAS)
• statement of Canada Pension Plan benefits T4A(P)
• Canada Pension Plan statement of contributions
• statement of direct deposit for Ontario Works
• statement of direct deposit for Ontario Disability Support Program
• Workplace Safety and Insurance Board statement of benefits T5007
• property tax assessment
• credit card statement, bank account statement, or RRSP, RRIF, RHOSP or T5 statement
• CNIB Card or a card from another registered charitable organization that provides services to persons with disabilities
• hospital card or record
• document showing campus residence, issued by the office or officials responsible for student residence at a post-secondary institution
• document showing residence at a long-term care home under the Long-Term Care Homes Act, 2007, issued by the Administrator for the home
• utility bill for hydro, water, gas, telephone or cable TV or a bill from a public utilities commission
• cheque stub, T4 statement or pay receipt issued by an employer
• transcript or report card from a post-secondary school

You can vote in the 2026 municipal election if you are: 

• A Canadian citizen; and
• At least 18 years old; and
  
•  A resident of the Township of Algonquin Highlands, or the owner or tenant of land in the Township of Algonquin Highlands, or the spouse of such owner or tenant
• Not prohibited from voting under any law

Who cannot vote?

•  A person serving a sentence of imprisonment in a penal or correctional institution
• Corporations
• A person acting as an executor, trustee
• A person convicted of a corrupt practice described in Section 90(3) of the Municipal Elections Act within the last 5 years

Yes, you can vote if you are a non-resident elector, subject to meeting all the voter eligibility requirements listed above. Proof of non-resident qualification will be required.

Note: If you do not personally own or rent the property in the Township you would not be considered a non-resident elector. For example, if the property is owned by your business or your cottage is owned by a trust, you would not qualify as a non-resident elector.

Yes, you can vote if you are a spouse of a non-resident property owner or tenant subject to meeting all the voter eligibility requirements listed above. Identification will be required to confirm who you are and the qualifying address of your spouse’s property in the Township of Algonquin Highlands. Please see the list of acceptable ID in Question 5. 

Note: If your spouse does not personally own or rent the property in the Township you would not be considered a spouse of a non-resident elector. For example, if the property is owned by your business or your cottage is owned by a trust, you would not qualify as a non-resident elector.

To vote in an English-Language Public District School Board, an elector, in addition to the voter eligibility requirements listed above, must:

• ·Be a supporter (or be the spouse of a supporter) of the English-language public district school board; or
• Not be a supporter of any school board, nor have qualified him or herself as an elector for a separate or French-language school board in the election. 

To vote in a French-Language Public District School Board, an elector must be a Roman Catholic and a French-language rights holder (see ss. 23(1) and (2) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms for criteria) who must: 

• Qualify as an elector for the French-language public district school board; or 
• Be a supporter (or the spouse of a supporter) of the French-language public district school board.

School boards can cover large geographic areas that may include several municipalities.  If you own multiple properties in the same school board jurisdiction you can only vote once for the trustee.

Please note that the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) keeps the provincial record of school support. To learn more about school support or how to change your school support, please visit MPAC's website.

You must vote in the ward where you live. If you are also the owner or tenant of a property in another ward or your spouse owns or rents a property in another ward, you are not permitted to vote in that ward instead.

If you are a non-resident elector and you own or rent properties in more than one ward in the municipality, you must choose one ward to vote in. Make sure that you are on the voters’ list for that qualifying address.

Eligible Electors may attend the Voter Help and Revision Centre in order to make additions, deletions, and corrections to the Voters’ List by filling out an application to amend the Voters’ List and provide satisfactory identification as of September 1, 2026.

The Voter Help and Revision Centre will also assist electors with the Internet Voting process, if they so wish, during the voting period from October 16 to October 26 at 8:00 PM during the dates and times listed below.  The Voter Help and Revision Centres will be supplied with an internet connection and computer to accommodate voting.   

Voter Help and Revision Centres will open on the following dates, times, and locations:

Township Administration Office

• Township Administration Office, Monday to Friday during normal business hours, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM from:
• September 1, 2026, in order to make additions, deletions, and corrections to the Voters List to October 23, 2026; and
•  October 26, 2026, Voting Day, between the hours of 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM 

•  Township Administration Office on Saturday, October 17, 2026, from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM.

Dorset Recreation Centre

• Dorset Recreation Centre, 1051 Main Street, Dorset, from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM on the following Wednesdays:

o   September 16, 2026

o   September 23, 2026

o   September 30, 2026

o   October 7, 2026

o   October 14, 2026

•  Dorset Recreation Centre, 1051 Main Street, Dorset, on Saturday October 24, 2026, from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM.
• Dorset Recreation Centre, 1051 Main Street Dorset, on Voting Day, Monday October 26, 2026, between the hours of 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM. 

Additional hours for eligible voters to attend the Voter Help and Revision Centre may be incorporated by the Clerk/Returning Officer at their discretion. Any additional Voter Help and Revision Centre hours will be advertised on the Township’s website and/or other methods deemed appropriate by the Clerk.

Trailer owners in campgrounds are considered tenants and may therefore vote if they are entitled to use the land on Voting Day, or for at least six weeks in the year of the election.

Students who reside away from home may vote in both places (in the municipality where they attend school and where their family resides) as long as the family residence is their permanent residence.