BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association
Your Data Your Rights
Provincial Election Privacy
Most of the provinces and territories have very similar legal frameworks surrounding elections. While all provinces and territories gather your personal information in the process of carrying out their elections, the information they collect and the way they handle it can vary from province to province. So, too, can the process of accessing or removing your personal information from their databases.
To understand what pieces of your personal information your provincial or territorial government has, how it’s used, and how you can control it, it’s important to understand the typical structure governments use to collect your information.
Alberta
The Register of Electors and the Voters List
When you register to vote, Elections Alberta collects and stores your personal information in the Register of Electors. Section 13(1) and (2) of the Alberta Election Act empower Elections Alberta to store your:
- Name
- Address
- Citizenship
- Phone number
- Email address (with your express consent specifically to list your email address)
- Date of birth
- A permanent unique identifier (a randomly generated number associated with your name)
To revise, update, and maintain the Register of Electors, Elections Alberta may also collect your personal data from the following sources:
- Telephone directories
- An agreement between Elections Alberta and a public body or individual
- Public bodies as defined in Alberta’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, which include:
- a department, branch, or office of the Government of Alberta
- an agency, board, commission, corporation, office, or other body designated as a public body in the regulations
- the Executive Council Office
- the office of a member of the Executive Council
- the Legislative Assembly Office
- the office of the Auditor General, the Ombudsperson, the Chief Electoral Officer, the Ethics Commissioner, the Information and Privacy Commissioner, the Child and Youth Advocate, or the Public Interest Commissioner
- an educational body
- a health care body
- a local government body
- any other information obtained by or available to [Elections Alberta]
Elections Alberta may also request address, mapping, demographic or geographic information, including geospatial information, from any of the above list of public bodies if they deem it necessary to maintain the Register [Section 13.1 (2) (3)].
From the Register of Electors, a voters list is created for each electoral division. It doesn’t take all the data from the Register; it only stores your name, address, and phone number if you provided it.
Access to and uses of the Register and Voters List
Access to the register is limited to Elections Alberta staff who have a need to use the register and have sworn an oath of confidentiality. You can access your personal information stored in the register, but it must be to ensure that it is correct, and you must show identification and sign a declaration.
Access to the voters list is not publicly shared during elections, but it is shared with MLAs, registered political parties, and political candidates.
Removal from the Register and Voters List
The issue of whether you can remove your information from the register is unclear.
To remove your information from the voters list, contact Elections Alberta at 1.877.422.8683 or info@elections.ab.ca.
Sources
Alberta Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act
Guidelines on Access to and Disclosure of Alberta’s List of Electors
Register to vote | Check Voter Registration | Elections Alberta
British Columbia
Provincial List of Voters
The government of British Columbia collects and records your personal information for its Provincial Voters List (“the voters list”). When you register to vote, it adds your name and residential address to the database.
This is a permanent list that is continuously maintained and updated. If you change your name or address on your BC driver’s license, your BCID, or your BC Services card, this change is automatically made in the voters list. Elections BC also has access to the National Register through elections Canada, and changes to your personal information in the federal database are also reflected in the voters list.
Access to and uses of your Personal Information
Elections BC uses the voters list to carry out the election and must only use the personal information provided on the voters list to do so.
The BC Election Act sets out who has access to your personal information from the voters list and how they can use it. Elections BC may provide you with the voters list for a charge.
Elections BC also shares your personal information in the voters list with members of the legislative assembly (MLAs), provincial political candidates [section 48(1)], and recall proponents. For candidates, only the list of voters in their electoral district is shared,
Section 275 (3) of the Election Act limits the use of your personal information by those with access to it, such as political parties and candidates, by creating a list of authorized uses. These uses include:
- Electoral purposes
- Communicating with you
- To identify potential jurors (by the Ministry of the Attorney General)
- For purposes authorized by the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, which can be found here (sections 32-34)
Your personal information from the voters list cannot be used for commercial purposes [s. 275 (3.3)]. Elections BC may require the party with access to your information to provide a signed statement that they will not use it for an unauthorized purpose [s. 275 (4)].
Removal and Protection of your Information
Section 46(2)(c) of the BC Elections Act allows you to request the removal of your personal information from the voters list through a written request. To exercise this right, fill out this form and email it to this email address.
You may also request to have your information protected from distribution to political parties and candidates while keeping it on the voters list. If you believe this distribution would put your privacy or security at risk, Elections BC will provide guidance on how you can vote without disclosing your residential address. For more information, contact Elections BC Voter Services at 1-800-661-8683 or:
Director, Voter Services
Elections BC
PO Box 9275 Stn Prov Govt
Victoria, BC V8W 9J6
Sources
Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act
Electoral Purposes for Access to and Use of Personal Information Regulation
Provincial Voters List | Elections BC
Manitoba
Elections Manitoba collects and records your personal information in a register of voters. They may include the following in the register:
- Name
- Address (residential and mailing)
- Phone number (if provided)
- Date of birth
- Gender
- A unique identifier (randomly generated figure attached to your name)
- Any other information deemed important for the list by Elections Manitoba
While the information in the register largely comes from when voters register to vote, there is a wide variety of sources that Elections Manitoba is authorized to gather personal information from, including:
- Information given to Elections Manitoba by voters
- Any source Elections Manitoba considers reliable
- Information from Elections Canada
- Your personal information held by another public body
From this register, a voters list is formed, which is sent out to election officials, MLAs, registered political parties, and political candidates. The voters list includes your:
- Name
- Address
- Phone number
- Unique identifier
Authorized Uses, Access, and Removal
The register of voters and the voters list are two different things; the register has more of your information but is used strictly for electoral purposes and mainly internally. The list of voters is used for electoral purposes but is also given out to other parties who could use it to effectively participate in the election, like MLAs, political parties, and political candidates.
Your information on the register isn’t directly given out. If your information is in the register but not the voters list, a registration agent may make a personal visit to your home to request to add you to a revised voters list [section 79(1)].
Once your name is on the voters list, there are different authorized uses of your personal information depending on who is accessing it.
- MLAs: To carry out their duties and functions as an MLA
- Political Parties and Candidates: To communicate with you (the voter)
- Election Officials: To carry out their duties
People and political parties are legally obligated to take all reasonable measures to protect your personal information from loss or unauthorized use [section 63.9 (1)].
You can request to have your personal information removed from the register. You can still vote if you do this. Without your information in the register, Elections Manitoba cannot put your information on a voters list, so political parties and candidates will be unable to access your information, and they will be unable to contact you [Section 63.5 (1)(c)].
To exercise this right, you can fill out this form and email it to elections@elections.mb.ca or mail it to the following address:
120 – 200 Vaughan Street
Winnipeg, MB R3C 1T5
Fax: 204-945-6011
You must include identification with your request for removal. It can either be one piece of government-issued photo ID, or two other pieces.
While there is no clear way to directly remove your information from voters lists, you can request to have your name omitted or obscured from voters lists and replaced with a personal security number. If you do so, you can only vote by homebound ballot. To discuss this possibility, you must contact Elections Manitoba.
Contact info:
120 – 200 Vaughan Street
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3C 1T5
Phone: 204-945-3225
Toll-free: 1-866-628-6837
Registration help: 204-815-2996
Registration help toll-free: 1-866-339-4870
Fax: 204-945-6011
Email: election@elections.mb.ca
Sources
New Brunswick
The Register of Electors and Voters Lists
Like Alberta and Manitoba, New Brunswick produces a register of electors and voters lists. When you register to vote, your personal information is added to the register of electors. It may be used in any election for the purposes set out by the Election Act. This information includes your:
- Name
- Sex
- Address
Your personal information can be added to the register through:
- A general enumeration of the province
- Another list of electors prepared for an election
- Treatment centres
- Elections Canada
- New Brunswick Department of Justice and Public Safety (for name, address, sex, date of birth, and other related information)
- New Brunswick Department of Environment and Local Government (for address data and other related information)
- Service New Brunswick (for name, address, sex, date of birth, date of death, date of residency, citizenship, and other related information)
However, regarding the last three bullet points, Elections New Brunswick can only use those sources to add a new voter to the register with that voter’s consent [s. 20.8(1)].
The voters lists are prepared using information from the register and potentially from an enumeration, or both [s. 20(2)]. There is a list for each electoral district. They have the same personal information as the register [s. 42.1(1)].
Voters lists, unlike the register, are shared with political parties, candidates, and MLAs. Parties and candidates can use your information to communicate with you and solicit your vote and/or contributions but cannot use it for any other purpose [sections 42(1), 42(2), 42.1(1), 42.1(2), 42.1(3)].
Controlling your Information
In New Brunswick, you may:
- request to add yourself to the register in between elections
- request access to all of your personal information stored in the register
- update your information in the register
- have the uses of that information limited to strictly electoral purposes
- Have your information removed from the register entirely
You must be on a list of electors (a voters list) to vote in New Brunswick. Although you may have your personal information removed at any point in between elections, if you would like to vote you may want to wait to remove your information until after the election is over.
Before the election, Elections New Brunswick will send you a card with information about the nearest poll, voting instructions, and more. If you remove your information from the register, you will not receive this card.
To have your information corrected or deleted from the register, fill out this form and mail it to this address:
Chief Electoral Officer
Sartain MacDonald Building
P. O. Box 6000
Fredericton, NB
E3B 5H1
Canada
Sources
Newfoundland and Labrador
Permanent List of Electors
Newfoundland and Labrador’s register of electors contains the following personal information:
- Name
- Address
- Date of Birth
- Electoral district
- Poll Assignment
This information is added from a variety of sources, including:
- Voter registration
- School boards [s. 56.2(1)]
- Elections Canada (s. 56.1)
Personal information from the Permanent List of Electors is extracted to create a voters list for each electoral district [s. 54(1.1)]. These voters lists contain your name and address and are shared with MHAs, political parties, and political candidates.
Controlling your Personal Information
To change or remove your information from the Permanent List of Electors, fill out this form and email it to voterslist@gov.nl.ca or mail it to:
39 Hallett Crescent,
St. John’s, NL
A1B 4C4
Sources
Northwest Territories
Register of Electors and Voters Lists
Northwest Territories collects and stores your personal information in its register of electors, which may include your:
- Name
- Address
- Phone number
- Email address
- Gender
- Date of birth
- The date you moved to your electoral district
However, data regarding your gender or date of birth can only be used to verify your identification or update the register; it won’t end up in a voters list that would be shared with other parties [s. 54(5)]. Elections NWT can enter into an agreement with any person, government, or organization to obtain any information that could assist in maintaining or updating the register of electors. A range of databases can be used to supplement the register [s. 55(2.1)]. Information from the register can be disclosed to MLAs who can use it to communicate with constituents [s.77(2)(a), 77(3)].
Voters lists are created from the data in the register of electors for each polling division or electoral district during an election [54. (7)]. A copy of the list is provided to political candidates [s. 75(1)].
Controlling your Personal Information
You have the right to request access to all information pertaining to you in the register to ensure that it is accurate [s. 54.1(1)]. Personal information in the register and in a voters list is strictly limited to electoral or authorized purposes.
There is no clear way within the Elections and Plebiscites Act to remove your information from the register of electors, but the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer is empowered to establish and maintain the register and, when an elector does not qualify to vote, they can remove them from the register.
The Office of the Chief Electoral Officer can be reached at info@electionsnwt.ca, 1-844-767-9100, or at the following address:
3rd Floor, YK Centre East
#7, 4915-48th Street
Yellowknife NT X1A 3S4
Sources
Office of the Chief Electoral Officer | Elections NWT
Voter Registration | Elections NWT
https://www.electionsnwt.ca/sites/electionsnwt/files/voter_guide_2019_web.pdf
Nova Scotia
The List of Electors
Elections Nova Scotia records your personal information in its register of electors when you register to vote. The register contains the following personal information:
- Name
- Address
- Contact information
- Birth date
- Unique identifier
- An indication of whether the elector voted in previous elections
It’s supplemented by information from other sources like:
- Registry of Motor Vehicles
- Vital Statistics
- Nova Scotia Civic Address File
- Elections Canada
Your personal information from the register of electors may be shared with each independent member of the House of Assembly and with registered political parties, but it must be used strictly for electoral purposes [s. 44].
Immediately after an election is called, a list of electors is developed for each electoral district with information from the register. These lists are distributed to registered political parties, independent elected members of electoral districts, and members of the House of Assembly [s. 59 (1), 59 (3), 59 (4)].
Controlling your Personal Information
You are entitled to access your own information within the register of electors. To exercise this right, call Elections Nova Scotia at 1-866-774-7074. You will need to provide pieces of personal information to verify your identity.
To have your name and information removed from the list of electors, you may apply in person, orally, or in writing. A person may also do so on your behalf (with satisfactory proof of your identity) if your information in the list is incorrect or if you no longer reside in the province [s.55(3)].
Sources
Nunavut
The Voters List(s)
In Nunavut, the clear division between a register of electors and the voters lists is not readily apparent. Instead, voters lists are prepared for each constituency [s. 43(1)].
These lists may contain the following personal information:
- Name
- Mailing address
- Civic address
Information for these voters lists, like with registers of electors, are gathered from voters’ own registration, and supplemented by these other sources:
- Voters lists from Elections Canada
- Previous final voters lists
- Municipal voters lists
- Any other source considered reliable by Elections Nunavut
Voters lists are shared with MLAs, political candidates, and registered political parties, but the use of the list is restricted to electoral purposes. For example, in the case of candidates, they must take reasonable precautions to ensure that every authorized party they share the list with is aware of the restrictions on its use, use strong passwords on electronic copies, and destroy their copies after the election. For more details, click on “Candidate use of a voters list- MLA Elections” at this link.
Controlling your Personal Information
You have the right to have your name struck from the voters list simply by stating a desire to do so [58(3)(a)]. To change your information in the list, you can call Elections Nunavut at 1-867-645-4610.
Sources
Ontario
Permanent Register of Electors
In Ontario, your personal information is stored in the permanent register of electors. This information is gathered when you register to vote and can be supplemented by any other source Elections Ontario considers to be reliable [s.17.1(4)]. Information in the register is shared with candidates, registered political parties, Elections Canada, and some municipalities strictly for electoral purposes, which includes communicating with you (the voter) to solicit your vote, party membership, and/or campaign contribution [s. 17.2, 17.3, 17.4].
Controlling your Personal Information
You may have the option to remove your personal information from the register or have it redacted from the register when it’s shared with political entities.
To have your information removed from the register, you can use Elections Ontario’s online registration portal, or you can fill out this form and email it to register@elections.on.ca with a copy of your ID attached.
To have your information redacted, Elections Ontario (the Chief Electoral Officer) must reasonably believe that the inclusion of your personal information in the distributed list would endanger your life, health, or security [s. 4.7]. In such a case, you can make a request for redaction by emailing priv@elections.on.ca.
Sources
Election Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. E.6
Prince Edward Island
The Register of Electors and Voters List
When you register to vote in a provincial election, Elections PEI collects your personal information and records it in a permanent list called the register of electors. It contains the following items of your personal information:
- Name
- Residential and mailing address
- Contact information
- Date of birth
- A unique identifier
- Any other information Elections PEI requires to be in an application for registration
Along with information you submit to the register when you register to vote, Elections PEI can use any other source of information available to them to update and maintain the register [s. 24.1 (2)(c)].
During an election, using the information from the register of electors, Elections PEI will create lists of voters containing the same personal information as appears in the register [24.2(a), 24.3(2)]. The final edit of the voters list, called the official voters list, is distributed to registered candidates (for their electoral district) and registered political parties [s. 62(2)].
Controlling your Information
You have the right to access your personal information held within the register of electors for the purpose of making sure that it is correct [s. 24.1(9)].
Sources
Saskatchewan
The Permanent Register of Voters
In Saskatchewan, your personal information is collected and stored in a permanent register of voters for the purpose of carrying out elections. The permanent register may include your:
- Name
- Address
- Date of birth
- Gender
- Phone number
- Unique identifier
Controlling your Personal Information
You have the right to access your personal information stored in the permanent register and to have it removed from the register [s. 18.6(1)]. To remove your information, fill out this form and email it to info@elections.sk.ca or mail it to:
301-3303 Hillsdale St
Regina, SK S4P 6W9
Sources
SS 1996, c E-6.01 | The Election Act, 1996 | CanLII
R-701 Application for Removal from the Permanent Register of Voters
Quebec
Permanent List of Electors
When you register to vote in Quebec, your personal information is added to the permanent list of electors. You can also add your information to the list of electors through an online form on Élections Québec’s website.
Quebec’s list of electors includes your:
- Name
- Address
- Sex
- Date of birth
- “Electoral territories” (the different electoral divisions you belong to, like your provincial electoral division or your municipal district)
Quebec also supplements its permanent list of electors with information from:
- School service centres
- Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec (unofficial English name: Quebec Health Insurance Board)
- The Public Curator
- Elections Canada
- the Department of Citizenship and Immigration of Canada
Controlling your Personal Information
You have the right to have your name struck from the permanent list of electors in Quebec [s. 40.6]. To do so, you must contact Élections Québec by writing them a short letter expressing your desire to have your name removed and attaching 2 pieces of identification. You can also request that the use of your personal information in the permanent list of electors only be used for provincial, municipal, or school elections (s. 40.6.1).
Sources
Yukon
The Voters List
Yukon maintains a register of electors and voters lists. The register of electors must include your:
- Name
- Date of birth
- Gender
- Address
- Any other information deemed necessary to maintain the register’s accuracy
This information must be used for strictly electoral purposes.
Controlling your Personal Information
You are entitled to access all your personal information recorded by Elections Yukon and kept in the register of electors [s.49]. You are also entitled to remove your information from the register [s. 136(1)].
Sources
These pages were last updated and reviewed in May of 2023.
The information on these pages only contains general information and guidance; none of the information constitutes legal advice. If you have a specific issue that you believe is a legal problem, the best practice is to consult a lawyer.
The information is non-partisan, dynamic, and ever changing. It is the result of FIPA’s research and public education programs.
If you note something that needs to be added, corrected, or removed, please contact us by email: fipa AT fipa.bc.ca.
