QUÉBEC CITY, June 2, 2026 /CNW/ - During the Québec week for persons with disabilities, Élections Québec is giving electors a few reminders about voting accessibility. This information will be useful for the provincial election on October 5.
Accessible polling places
For several months now, the Élections Québec team has been visiting different locations that could be used as polling places. The team notes information about access to the space, identifies potential obstacles, and determines what corrections are needed before the election. This could involve installing door threshold ramps or having access ramps built, for example.
The institution selects polling places based on established accessibility criteria. It prioritizes locations with parking spaces reserved for persons with disabilities, level access, and adapted washrooms. Other criteria are essential: the team assesses the width and length of hallways leading to the voting room and the door opening mechanisms.
In preparation for the 2026 election, Élections Québec worked with specialized consultants to refine some of its accessibility criteria. Since then, the institution has notably paid closer attention to the outdoor path that electors take to reach the entrance to the polling place. For example, it makes sure that the natural slope of the terrain is adequate for mobility impaired persons.
Accessibility of polling places according to voting options
All advance poll locations will be accessible.
On election day, there will be nearly four times as many polling places as during the advance poll. Élections Québec will attempt to adapt any polling places that do not meet all of its accessibility criteria. However, it has never been able to find enough accessible polling places for election day. It must work with existing buildings and the availability of premises. Despite this, during the 2022 general election, more than 90% of the approximately 4,000 polling places were accessible on election day.
If a polling place does not meet all of its criteria, the institution shares this information with the electors concerned. It uses the appropriate pictogram on the information card that is mailed to electors to indicate the address of the polling place. It also posts specific information about access to the location on its website, such as the width of the door frames, the slope of the access ramp, and if there is parking reserved for persons with disabilities. This way, electors can verify whether they are likely to encounter obstacles based on their personal situation. In such cases, they could be authorized to vote at another accessible location.
Lesser-known voting options
Élections Québec offers other accessible voting options that are less well known.
Electors can vote at the office of any returning officer in Québec for five days leading up to election day. All of these offices will be accessible to mobility impaired persons.
In addition, electors who are unable to move about for health reasons will have the option to vote at home. If they are in a residential facility, such as a rehabilitation or hospital centre, they will also be able to vote in their room. They will vote for a candidate in the electoral division of their domicile, even if the facility is located in another electoral division. To use these two voting options, electors must submit a request between the start of the election period and the 14th day before election day.
Tools to facilitate voting
An accessibility kit will be available upon request at each polling place. It will contain a lighted magnifying glass, a pencil with a grip for easier handling, a clipboard, a Braille voting template with indications to guide the person, a large-print poster of the candidates, and a tool with pictograms to facilitate communication between election officers and people who are deaf or hearing impaired.
In addition, there will be a photo of each candidate on the ballot paper to help people with reading difficulties.
Accessibility of information
The Guide for Provincial Elections, which provides all the information needed to vote, will be adapted into various versions. Electors will be able to consult an accessible version, an audio version, and a Québec Sign Language version on the Élections Québec website.
About Élections Québec
Élections Québec is a neutral and independent institution striving to ensure the integrity, transparency, and reliability of elections and to promote Québec's democratic values.
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SOURCE Élections Québec
Source: Media Relations Department, Élections Québec, 418-644-3320 or 1-888-870-3320, [email protected]
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