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.

Image source, Getty Images

As we've just reported, the first polls to open in Canada were in Newfoundland and parts of Labrador.

There are seven ridings in the country's most eastern province, with each corresponding to a seat in the House of Commons.

They are: Avalon, Cape Spear, Central Newfoundland, Labrador, Long Range Mountains, St John's East, and Terra Nova - The Peninsulas.

In January 2025, the provincial government recorded a population count of 545,579.

As that population - of voting age - cast their ballots, stay with us to follow the polls opening across the country.

It's now 08:30 in Newfoundland and parts of Labrador, which means the first polls in Canada are now opening.

Of course, some have already opted to vote via post or through advance polling stations.

But the majority of Canadians will be voting today.

Image source, Getty Images

Matt McGrath
Environment correspondent

As the threat posed by US President Donald Trump tops Canada's federal election agenda, the issue of the country's contribution to global warming has been largely overshadowed.

The two main contenders are pushing plans for new energy infrastructure as the country seeks to pivot away from its reliance on the United States.

Carney's Liberals are promising to make Canada a global superpower in both conventional and green energy. The Conservatives under Poilievre want to invigorate the oil and gas sector and scrap the industrial carbon tax.

It's a big shift from the 2021 election, when the environment topped the list of voter concerns.

Carney, who became prime minister in early March, has a long track record as an international champion of climate change.

However, his first action as prime minister was to repeal the consumer carbon levy.

Poilievre is running on cost-of-living issues, and advocating for tougher policies on law and order and what he considers "woke" cultural issues.

• Canada's top candidates talk up fossil fuels as climate slips down agenda

Jessica Murphy
Reporting from Montreal

In Quebec, the issue of independence from Canada has long simmered. But faced with US tariffs and President Donald Trump's comments about making Canada the 51st US state, many voters are now seeking unity.

The Bloc Québécois is a federal party that supports independence and only runs candidates in the predominantly French-speaking province.

"Canadian patriotism is on the rise in Quebec", says Émilie Foster, an adjunct professor in politics at Carleton University. "We prefer to be part of Canada instead of being part of the United States, if we have to choose."

Quebec can be a wildcard in general elections, and winning the province - which holds 78 seats of the 343 in the House of Commons - can propel a party to power.

Trump's tariffs are expected to hit Quebec especially hard. The province is one of the biggest suppliers to the US of aluminium, a sector hit by Trump's 25% tariffs. Its significant forestry and dairy industries are also in the president's sights.

Quebec also fiercely protects its identity and its culture as a distinct society, and has twice held referendums on whether to seek independence from the rest of Canada. That's why the US president's repeated digs at Canada's sovereignty has sparked such disquiet here.

Image source, Getty Images

Eleven people were killed on Saturday - only days before the election - when a car ramming attack took place in Vancouver on Canada’s west coast.

A 30-year-old male, identified as Kai-Ji Adam Lo is in custody and faces several murder charges after a single vehicle drove through an event marking Lapu Lapu Day at 20:14 local time (04:14 BST).

Little is known about the identity of those killed and wounded, but acting Vancouver police chief Steve Rai told reporters that the victims’ ages range from five to 65 years old.

Thousands - largely from the city’s Filipino community - had gathered for the festivities, which takes place annually to celebrate Lapu Lapu, a national hero who resisted Spanish colonisation in the 1500s.

While we continue to bring you coverage of today’s national election, we’ll also be keeping our news story updated with any developing details on the events in Vancouver.

In Canada, elections closely resemble that of the UK, as both operate under a Westminster Parliamentary system.

Here is a breakdown of how Canada’s elections work:

• Voters cast their ballots at polling stations in their local cities and towns
• Some vote early in advance polls, but most show up on the day of the election
• On the ballot are the names of candidates running for each federal party in that area - known as a ‘riding’
• The candidate with the most votes wins that riding’s seat in parliament, meaning they will be representing voters in that geographical region in the capital, Ottawa
• The party with the most winning candidates, and therefore seats, traditionally gets to form government, and the leader of that party becomes prime minister of Canada
• Not every win is equal, however. Some parties score a majority win - meaning they win 172 seats or more
• This makes it easier for that party to govern and pass its agenda, given that they hold the majority of parliament
• Another outcome is a minority government, where a party has the most seats but less than 172
• That party still gets to lead but would require support from other parties to pass legislation, making their governance more shaky

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

There are two key parties to watch in this election: the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party.

They have been locked in a tight race as they head into polling day. The Liberals have held power since 2015, when Justin Trudeau was elected prime minister.

The Conservatives have been the official opposition since then. This is nothing new.

Historically, Canada has been governed by one of the two parties, though at least three others - the New Democratic Party (NDP), the Bloc Québécois and the Green Party of Canada - will likely pick up seats across the country.

Polls from early April show the Liberals have taken a slight lead - but it remains an extremely tight race between the two main contenders.

Image source, Reuters

Jenna Moon
Live page editor (and Canadian)

It’s election day in Canada - and the first federal campaign in a decade that I haven’t followed from my hometown of Toronto.

In fact, I’m technically on holiday today, so I’ll be watching the day unfold alongside other BBC readers through our digital and television coverage.

Luckily, my colleagues are stationed around the country - from Montreal to Ottawa to Vancouver Island - to bring us the latest news and analysis all day.

This is a uniquely compelling election. Six months ago, I’d have told you with near certainty that Ottawa would be welcoming a Conservative government helmed by Pierre Poilievre after years of worsening public sentiment towards former Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

But then US President Donald Trump took office and the reality of what his second term might mean for Canada set in. Now, tariffs are biting Canadian industries, especially automakers and steel producers.

The threat of annexation or becoming the “51st state”, meanwhile, is impossible for Canadians to ignore. They’re ditching US-made goods in droves and are cancelling trips south of the border.

An election expected to be a referendum on almost 10 years of Liberal governance is now firmly centred on who can best stand up to Trump.

Voting also comes after the attack in Vancouver at the weekend where a car was driven into a street festival , killing at least 11 people, including a five-year-old girl.

Polling shows that Poilievre’s Conservatives are in a dead heat with the Liberals - now headed by Mark Carney following Trudeau’s resignation in January.

How Canada votes will shape the country’s newly strained relationship with its closest neighbour and ally. I’ll be following closely. I hope you join us.