Casual Legal: Voting Eligibility for the 2025 Municipal Election

DISCLAIMER: This article is meant to provide information only and is not intended to provide legal advice. You should seek the advice of legal counsel to address your specific set of circumstances. Although every effort has been made to provide current and accurate information, changes to the law may cause the information in this article to be outdated. 

By Michael Swanberg 

Reynolds Mirth Richards Farmer LLP 

Alberta Municipalities Casual Legal Service Provider

For the 2025 municipal election scheduled for October 20, 2025, a person is eligible to vote if they are at least 18 years old as of the election day, they are a Canadian citizen, they reside in Alberta and the person’s “place of residence” is located in the local jurisdiction on election day.   

Determining a person’s “place of residence” can be challenging, particularly where people reside in more than one residence at different times of the year. The following rules apply in determining a person’s “place of residence”: 

• A person may be a resident of only one place at a time;
• If a person has more than one residence in Alberta, that person shall designate one place of residence as the person’s place of residence for the purpose of voting under the LAEA, and the following factors govern that designation in order of priority:
• The address shown on the person’s driver’s license or identification card issued by the Government of Alberta;
• The address to which the person’s income tax correspondence is addressed and delivered; and
• The address to which the person’s mail is addressed and delivered.
• A person’s residence is the place where the person lives and sleeps and to which, when the person is absent, they intend to return; and
• A person does not lose their residence by leaving their home for a temporary purpose.  

Students attending post-secondary institutions in Alberta or elsewhere who temporarily rent accommodations for the purpose of attending that post-secondary institution, and have family members who are resident in Alberta with whom the student ordinarily resides when not attending the post-secondary institution, are deemed to reside with those family members for purpose of determining their residency for voting eligibility under the LAEA.  

For the 2025 general election, special rules apply for determining eligibility to vote in Jasper. People are eligible to vote in Jasper even if they do not qualify under the “normal” eligibility rules if they were a resident of Jasper on July 22, 2024, they continue to be displaced from living in Jasper as a result of the 2024 wildfires, and they intend to resume residency in Jasper as soon as is reasonably practicable.  

All election candidates and their campaign staff should familiarize themselves with these rules to ensure they give accurate information to potential electors who ask questions about voter eligibility. Returning officers and deputies must also be familiar with these rules to ensure that only eligible voters cast ballots on election day.  

To access Alberta Municipalities Casual Legal Helpline, Alberta Municipalities members can call toll-free to 1.800.661.7673 or email casuallegal [at] abmunis.ca (casuallegal[at]abmunis[dot]ca) and reach the municipal legal experts at Reynolds Mirth Richards and Farmer LLP. For more information on the Casual Legal Service, please contact riskcontrol [at] abmunis.ca (riskcontrol[at]abmunis[dot]ca), or call 310.MUNI (6864) to speak to Alberta Municipalities Risk Management staff. Any Regular or Associate member of Alberta Municipalities can access the Casual Legal Service.