Last year, democracy at the University of Calgary came with polling stations and dogs.
During Calgary’s 2025 municipal election, students could cast an advance ballot in the Dining Centre between classes. The Students’ Union (SU) brought in Dogs for Democracy, hosted a Ward 7 debate and helped students navigate the voting process.
Basically, voting, as a task, was difficult to ignore.
This month Albertans are heading to the polls once again for the Oct. 19 provincial referendum. However, despite UCalgary’s history of hosting polling stations, there is no referendum voting station on campus.
That absence is particularly noticeable given the inarguable significance of this vote.
Whatever way an individual leans politically, this referendum is no ordinary trip to the polls and students have a particular reason to pay attention.
Several questions touch areas that directly intersect with student life. Albertans are being asked about immigration, eligibility for publicly funded education, health care and social services. Of course, the final question asks about the province’s place within Canada.
Once students graduate, they will enter Alberta’s workforce and build their futures under whatever political direction this referendum sets in motion. International students, meanwhile, are studying in a province where immigration status and access to publicly funded services are being placed under direct scrutiny.
We are not watching Alberta’s future from the sidelines. We are a part of it.
Voters do not need to hold a passionate opinion on all ten questions. But when voters are being asked questions this consequential, students should have every opportunity to participate.
So, why isn’t there a polling station on a campus with thousands of potential voters?
There may be a practical explanation.
Alberta eliminated “vote anywhere” advance voting. Meaning, from Oct. 13-17, voters can only use advance polling locations within their electoral division where they ordinarily reside. On Oct. 19, they must vote at their assigned location.
That changes what a university polling station can accomplish.
A student who spends five days a week at U of C, but lives in another electoral division, could walk past a campus poll every day and still be unable to use it. Unlike previous elections, one campus location could not serve students coming from across Calgary.
That makes the lack of a polling station more understandable. But it does not make accessible voting less important.
Accessibility is not simply whether a polling station exists somewhere in your electoral division. Students commute, work and spend long days on campus. Adding another trip across the city may seem minor, but it makes participation much more difficult.
Elections Alberta seems to recognize this principle. Its own voting guidance says advance polling stations are commonly located in identifiable public buildings so that they are convenient to where people live or work.
Even if a campus station cannot serve everyone, it could still make voting considerably easier for students and staff who live within the appropriate electoral division.
Other options do exist, though. Any eligible voter can apply for a special ballot, and students studying away from home may benefit from one as well. For those who requested a special ballot to vote by mail, completed ballots must be returned by mail and received by Oct. 16.
Options only improve accessibility when people know they exist.
This is why campus polling should not be an election-year bonus. U of C and the SU should consistently advocate for on-campus voting whenever possible.
The SU has created a referendum information page explaining the questions, voting dates, and special ballots despite being described as non-partisan. However, the university itself has been considerably quieter.
Perhaps that is intentional. A referendum involving immigration, constitutional powers and Alberta separation is politically charged. Institutional neutrality is the safest option.
Nevertheless, neutrality about the outcome does not require silence about participation. There is a difference between influencing a vote and making sure students can cast one.
They can upload voting deadlines on D2L, use campus screens to explain and promote voting options, and publicize special ballots.
The SU already demonstrates that these things can coexist. Universities should be particularly good at this distinction. Their role is not to hand students answers but supply the information and opportunities necessary to reach their own.
On Oct. 19, Albertans will be asked ten particularly consequential questions about how this province may look in the future.
UofC has made voting accessible on campus before. New voting rules may make doing so more complicated this time, but they do not make accessibility any less important.
A campus polling station may not be feasible for every election or every student. But making it easier for students to participate should be a priority. If we can remove a barrier between students and the ballot box, why wouldn’t we? Where there are opportunities to lower the barriers to participation, we should take them.
