Voting Opportunities

Absentee Ballots and Online Voting

Registered voters unable to make it to any ordinary or advance polls can apply for an absentee ballot that allows them to vote online or by mail.

Absentee ballot applications are available from October 3, 2023 to 2:00 PM on November 4, 2023.

The absentee ballot application offers two options for absentee voting:

1. Cast a ballot by mail

This request generates a paper ballot, which will be mailed to the voter. This must be returned to the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer by 8:00 PM on ordinary polling day, November 14, 2023.

2. Cast your ballot online

NOTE: The application's default is to issue a mail-in ballot, so be sure to select an online ballot from the drop-down menu.

From October 3, 2023 on, voters may apply for an online ballot. They will receive an email with a Personal Identification Number (PIN) and a link, at which they can complete and submit their ballot online. A voter can use this PIN from October 24 to November 14 at 8:00 PM. Online ballots must be completed before 8:00 PM, November 14, 2023.

Absentee ballot applications are now closed.

NOTE: To cancel an absentee ballot once it has been issued, a voter must apply to the Chief Electoral Officer via a written letter or email.

Voting in the Office of the Returning Officer

Registered voters who can’t to make it to the polls on ordinary election day can cast their ballot in the Office of their Returning Officer during several weeks of the election period. This can be done by contacting a voter's local returning officer (Click here for a list of Returning Officers and the communities they serve), arranging to show up during their regular working hours, and then presenting ID (Click here for a rundown of acceptable identification) and requesting a ballot, much as you would at a polling station on Election Day.

In the 2023 territorial general election, voting in the Office of the Returning Officer takes place during office hours between October 24 and November 11, 2023.

Click here for a list of Returning Officers and the communities they serve.

Click here for a rundown of acceptable identification

Vote Anywhere Initiative

This year, Elections NWT is running a trial “Vote Anywhere” model, in which eligible voters from smaller communities will be able to cast a ballot for their home electoral district from central returning offices in Yellowknife, Hay River, Fort Smith or Inuvik. This model ensures ease of access to voters from smaller communities who may be temporarily located in one of the NWT’s larger centres, for medical, educational, employment or other reasons, or for those who live closer to a large centre than the community in which their Returning Officer is located. The Vote Anywhere model will be available to any voter with up-to-date information in the Register of Electors who presents valid proof of identity to the Returning Officer.

The Vote Anywhere model takes place during voting in the office of the Returning Officer, from Tuesday, October 24, to Saturday, November 11, 2023.

Advance Polls

Advance poll dates, times and locations will be determined by the Returning Officer and are only available in communities without a resident Returning Officer. (Click here for a list of Returning Officers and the communities they serve.) 

Information on Advance Polls in each electoral district will be posted, once writs of election have been issued, on October 16, 2023.

Mobile Polls

Mobile polls, in which a voter may request their ballot be brought directly to them by a Returning Officer, can be requested by voters who may have physical or other difficulties attending a poll station. Applications for a mobile poll can be made with the Returning Officer in your electoral district from October 31 to November 3, 2023.

Any requested Mobile Polls will be administered in all districts between November 7 and November 10, 2023.

Click here for a list of Returning Officers and the communities they serve.

Ordinary Polling Day

By law, ordinary polling day in the NWT is the first Tuesday in October in the fourth calendar year following polling day for the last General Election. In 2023, the original date for the election followed this principle, and was set to occur on October 3, 2023. However, unprecedented wildfire activity and the resulting mass evacuations of NWT residents in August of 2023 made it necessary to delay the election for six weeks:

The next Territorial General Election is Tuesday, November 14, 2023.

Polls are open from 9 AM to 8 PM.

Before you arrive at the poll, make sure you have sufficient proof of identity and residency. (Click here for information about acceptable identification.)

Any further questions? Contact us at info@electionsnwt.ca