Time To Vote and Other Election Fast Facts

AT THE END OF THE DAY
Voters can head to the polls on Tuesday, Aug. 5, between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m.

At 7 p.m., the deputy returning officer takes note of any voters who are waiting to cast a ballot. The polls stay open until these individuals have voted.

A person arriving after 7 p.m., however, won't be allowed to vote.

THOSE THREE HOURS OFF
Under Nova Scotia's Elections Act, employers must allow employees three consecutive hours to vote while the polls are open (between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m.).

That doesn't mean you get to book three hours off.

For example, an employee scheduled to work 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. may leave an hour early to satisfy the three-hour requirement. Or he or she may be able to come in two hours late that morning.

Better check with the boss.

TELL ME ONE MORE TIME...
If you have not received a notice of registration confirming that you are on the voters' list, you can still vote. You can be added to the list at your local polling station, at the special, advance and ordinary polls, or at your returning office on Aug. 4.

Information on returning offices can be found in the "Election Day, August 5" link of the Elections Nova Scotia Web site at www.gov.ns.ca/elo . Maps of electoral districts are also available on the site.

Voters can also receive information on their returning offices by calling Public Enquiries toll-free at 1-866-802-8584 or 424-7470 in Halifax Regional Municipality between 9 a.m. and 8 p.m. from Monday to Friday and between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Saturdays.

People are encouraged to check whether they are on the voters' list before voting. If not, bring proper identification to the polling station and you can be added to the list prior to voting.

Voters who are unable to vote on the regular election day can cast ballots at special polls being held at local returning offices. The special polls are taking place on the following dates: -- Tuesday, July 29 from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. -- Wednesday, July 30 from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Advance polls will be held on Friday, Aug. 1, and Saturday, Aug. 2, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

HAND IT OVER
Have you ever wondered why a voter cannot deposit his or her ballot directly in the ballot box?

The law actually requires a voter to return the ballot to the deputy returning officer who in turn puts it into the box.

The process is designed to allow the officer to verify that the ballot is the same piece of paper handed to the voter minutes before. The officer does this by checking for his or her initials and a serial number on the still-folded ballot.

The initials are added in front of witnesses just before the polls open. The Elections Act calls for them to be affixed "uniformly" and "either entirely with ink of one colour, or entirely with black lead pencil, in the space provided for that purpose on the back of the ballot papers."

OUT FOR THE COUNT
Under the Elections Act, a deputy returning officer must reject a ballot if it is: -- not supplied by the deputy returning officer -- not marked for any candidate -- not marked, by pencil or pen, with a cross, an X, a check mark or a line in the circle to the right of a candidate's name -- marked for more than one candidate -- "so marked to render it uncertain" which candidate received the vote -- written upon, whereby such writing identifies the voter (marks made by the deputy returning officer are excluded)

Rejected ballots are placed in an envelope and held for examination in possible recounts.

IT'S OFFICIAL
Although ballots are counted after the polls close, and results relayed to news outlets, election results are not official for two more days.

The official tally of votes begins at 10 a.m. on the Thursday after the election. It is conducted by the constituency returning officer before witnesses at his or her headquarters.

Another week after that, the results are deemed official -- pending recounts notwithstanding.

The returning officer then transmits them on a "recapitulation sheet," to the chief electoral officer and to the candidates or their representatives.