Image source, Reuters

In Chambly, Quebec, Bloc Quebecois leader Yves-François Blanchet has cast his vote in today's election.

He heads the Quebec-sovereigntist party that only runs candidates in the French-speaking province.

The 60-year-old became leader of the Bloc in 2019, but first got involved in politics in the 1980s as a member of the youth committee of the provincial Parti Québécois.

Image source, Reuters

Nada Tawfik
Reporting from Ottawa

We’ve been speaking to a few voters who turned up shortly after polls opened in the Ottawa South riding. Several issues came up from healthcare and housing to the economy more broadly.

But among liberal voters, one overarching theme was the threats from US President Donald Trump.

It’s the first time Vency Okoye is voting, and she said the last few months had decided her vote.

She describes Prime Minister Mark Carney as strong, confident and fiscally responsible. “He has a PhD in economics and the man actually knows what he’s doing,” she tells me.

Friends Michelle and Claudia say it felt like Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre was really in Trump’s corner until it became a political liability.

“It definitely felt very wishy washy and didn’t ring true for me,” Michelle says.

Another woman told me that it took the conservative leader “so long to say something against the country downstairs” that she felt it showed weakness.

Ali Abbas Ahmadi
Reporting from Toronto

Image source, BBC / Ali Abbas Ahmadi

I'm speaking to voters in the Scarborough-Agincourt riding on the outskirts of Toronto.

Zhu Zhang, an engineer who has just cast his vote, tells me that the "deal with the United States" and immigration were his biggest concerns.

"If the Conservatives win, they will bring some change - especially with criminals", he says, emphasising that crime is a big problem in the Greater Toronto Area.

Image source, Getty Images

Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre just voted in Ottawa where he is MP for Carleton, where 91 candidates are on the ballot.

Poilievre has represented the riding since 2004.

He was accompanied to the polling station by his wife Anaida.

Asya Robins
Live reporter

Image source, Getty Images

The snap election Canadians are voting in today was called by Prime Minister Mark Carney after he took control of the Liberal Party, replacing his colleague, Justin Trudeau.

Here’s a quick look at what has happened so far today, following an electoral campaign dominated by US President Donald Trump’s claims of Canada becoming a 51st US state, and tariffs on Canadian exports south of its border.

• Polls have now opened across all of Canada. Voting will continue throughout the day with the last polls scheduled to close at 22:00 EDT (03:00 BST)
• Roughly 7.3 million people - about a quarter of all eligible voters in the country - have already voted in advance polls, according to Elections Canada
• Earlier, US President Donald Trump urged Canadians to vote towards becoming "the cherished 51st State of the United States of America", in a post on his Truth Social account
• In response, Conservative Party leader Pierre Poillievre told Trump to "stay out of our election", adding that Canada "will NEVER be the 51st state”
• And in an apparent reference to Trump, Liberal leader Mark Carney told Canadians that Canada decides "what happens here"

We'll continue to bring you the latest developments throughout the day, so stick with us.

Polls in all Canadian provinces are open and we're seeing images coming through of people waiting in queues to cast their votes.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Getty Images

Liberal leader Mark Carney tells Canadians that Canada decides "what happens here", in what appears to be a reference to President Trump, who repeated his calls for Canada to become the 51st US state in a post on Truth Social earlier today.

In a video posted on X, external, Carney tells the public to choose to be "united and strong" against the "crisis in the United States," which he says doesn’t stop at Canadian borders.

He says the US can "become divided and weak, but this is Canada".

Earlier, Carney’s opponent Pierre Poilievre also responded to Trump, which you can read in our previous post.

Image source, Getty Images

As we have just reported, US President Donald Trump has posted on social media, reiterating claims that he wants to make Canada the 51st state of America.

In response, Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre has told Trump to “stay out of our election”.

Posting on X, external, Poilievre says the only people "who will decide the future of Canada are Canadians at the ballot box.

"Canada will always be proud, sovereign and independent and we will NEVER be the 51st state."

He adds that Canadians can vote for change so they can “stand up to America”.

Poilievre was the first leader to respond to President Trump's post- we will bring you the reaction from other party leaders if we get them.

Image source, Getty Images

US President Donald Trump has posted on his Truth Social account, external urging Canadians to vote towards becoming "the cherished 51st State of the United States of America".

"Elect the man who has the strength and wisdom to cut your taxes in half, increase your military power, for free, to the highest level in the World, have your Car, Steel, Aluminum, Lumber, Energy, and all other businesses, QUADRUPLE in size, WITH ZERO TARIFFS OR TAXES," he writes.

The US president calls to end an "artificially drawn line from many years ago", adding: "Look how beautiful this land mass would be."

He also says America "can no longer subsidize Canada with the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars a year that we have been spending in the past" unless it is a US state.

Eloise Alanna
Reporting from Montreal

Image source, BBC / Eloise Alanna

Bob Croskey was first in line this morning at La Maisonnette des Parents, a community centre in Montreal’s Little Italy currently serving as a polling station.

A retired historian originally from the United States, Bob is voting for the first time as a Canadian citizen.

Though he says he remains “fundamentally American,” with family roots there stretching back over 200 years, he tells us he feels “deeply ashamed” of the United States today.

“It’s deeply depressing that we have a criminal elected president of the US,” he says.

Living in Canada, Bob says he feels “protected” and is “very glad and grateful” to the country for “taking me in."

Polls are now open in the rest of British Columbia, which will elect 43 MPs today and Yukon - one of Canada’s three northern territories - which has just one seat up for grabs.

That means across all of Canada right now, the country’s political future is now being decided.

We will continue to bring you the latest, stay with us.

Image source, Getty Images

There are six different time zones in Canada, and this means that polling stations across the country open at different times.

Polls have just opened in a third group of areas, spanning several provinces across three of those time zones.

Ontario - in Canada's most southern province, there are 122 seats up for grabs.

Quebec - in the largely French-speaking province, there are 78 seats in the running.

Manitoba - 14 seats are up for grabs in the central Canadian province.

Saskatchewan - there are 14 constituencies in this province, also in the centre of Canada.

British Columbia - in the western-most province of Canada, there are 43 seats available/

Nunavut - voting is taking place for one person to represent the territory that has a population of about 40,000 people.

Voters in three more Canadian time zones are now able to have their say in polling stations.

Polls are now open in the provinces of Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, parts of British Columbia, and the Northwest Territories and Nunavut territory.

Image source, Getty Images

Unlike its southern neighbour, Canada’s ballots are hand counted by paid election workers in front of witnesses.

Political parties can appoint members who will witness the vote count.

Voting machines are not used for counting in Canada and the count begins when the polls close.

The results available on election night are preliminary and are validated in the days following the election, then published online.

Just under two weeks before the election, leaders of Canada's four major parties took to the stage to take place in a televised debate.

It was a chance for the prime ministerial hopefuls to directly challenge their oppositions, and try to rally more support.

Taking part in the debate were Liberal leader, and current Prime Minister, Mark Carney, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh and Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet.

Carney took a lot of the heat on the night, as the leaders focused on his predecessor Justin Trudeau's policies.

But it was someone off stage who stole much of the spotlight - US President Donald Trump.

A big question heading into the two-hour forum was whether Liberal leader Mark Carney, who has been leading in the polls, would stumble.

Each leader was also asked about the US tariffs, and they appeared to concede that it is ultimately not an equal fight.

Despite the frequent cross-talk, the tone overall was rather cordial.

The general sense of decorum was apparent when the leaders were discussing the housing crisis. In a rebuttal to Poilievre, Carney appeared to stop himself before laying into his opponent.

In Canadian elections, voters don’t directly vote for a prime minister but they choose between political parties.

Here’s a quick summary of the main parties:

Liberals - a centre-left party that has been in power for much of Canada's recent history. It is progressive on some social issues, like abortion and LGBT rights, but is also supportive of free markets.

Conservatives - the other major player in Canadian politics is led by Pierre Poilievre. They stand for low taxes and government regulation in the economy.

This cycle, their stance has mirrored other right-wing parties around the world, speaking against “woke” agendas and calling for reduced immigration.

New Democratic Party - sits a little to the left of the Liberals and champions a social democratic society with some government regulation of the economy.

The party takes progressive stances on social issues, such as immigration and the environment.

Bloc Québécois - a Quebec-sovereigntist party that only runs candidates in the French-speaking province.

Green Party - holds the fifth-largest amount of seats in the House of Common. They focus on championing a fairer future for all and protecting the climate.

Image source, Getty Images

Early voting for this election has shattered records with about 7.3 million people already casting their ballots nationwide, according to Elections Canada - the independent agency that administers the polls.

That is about a quarter of all eligible voters.

In the 2021 federal election, 5.8 million Canadians voted early.

Advance voting began 18 April and ended 22 April.

Those who didn’t vote will have the chance to do so today. Early votes are counted after polls close, but election workers can request to start counting one hour before polls close, if the volume is high.

Image source, Reuters

It’s pretty simple. To vote in a Canadian election you must:

• be a Canadian citizen
• be at least 18-years-old, and
• have proof of your identity and address

Image source, Getty Images

In Prince Edward Island, there are four seats up for grabs. New Brunswick has 10, and in Nova Scotia, there are 11 seats.

As we mentioned earlier, there are seven seats in Newfoundland and Labrador, which is where the first polls in Canada opened today.

The next set of polling stations will open in just under two hours, with people in Ontario, Quebec and Nunavut and others stretching all the way to British Columbia getting ready to vote.

The provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and the rest of Labrador are next to join in as polling stations continue to open across Canada.

It's 08:30 local time there now, and people are beginning to make their way to cast their votes.