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Civic Engagement and Elections
2025 Calgary General Election
Election Day in Calgary is October 20, 2025. Your vote will help influence public transit, waste collection, recreation programs, police, and fire services in Calgary.
Register to vote, find your polling station, and learn about the candidates so you’re ready to cast your ballot and have your voice counted.
Get ready to vote!
Get ready ahead of Election Day to cast your ballot! Here are three steps you can take in advance to make sure your vote counts:
1. Register to vote in advance. New this year, eligible voters must be on the permanent electors register to vote. Not sure if you’re on the list? Eligible voters can check if they are registered, update their information or add themselves to the electors register until August 1, 2025. Visit www.voterlink.ab.ca to get started. If you do not register in advance, you can still register and vote during Advance Voting (October 6 – 11) or on Election Day (October 20).
2. Make sure you have acceptable identification to be able to vote. You can find out more about what Elections Calgary will accept on voting day on their website. Learn what identification is accepted.
3. Learn more about the candidates and school board trustees. Consider what issues are most important to you. Learn more about what’s happening in your ward and what the candidates stand for. School board trustees are also up for election in October. View the candidates.
Ward Boundaries
Where you vote and who you vote for in the Municipal Election on Monday, October 20, depends on your ward. Find your councillor and ward so you can be ready to vote on Election Day.
Municipal Government 101 and School Board Trustees
Do you know the difference between the responsibilities of certain levels of government? Here's a breakdown of municipal responsibilities.
Municipal governments are responsible for?
- Building Permits and Zoning
- Water and Sewer Services
- City Parks and Recreation
- Roads and Sidewalks
- Public Transportation
- Libraries
- Local Police
- Fire Rescue Services
- Garbage and Recycling
- Snow Removal
- Animal Control
Find more information on the municipal election at calgary.ca/election
What's New for the 2025 General Election
Legislation passed by the Government of Alberta will change how the 2025 General Election is administered:
- Using a permanent electors register (electors register) to verify the eligibility of voters.
- Piloting local political parties and slates at the municipal level in Calgary and Edmonton.
- Banning the use of vote tabulators and requiring a hand count of ballots on Election Day.
- Additional campaign disclosure deadlines for candidates, third party advertisers, and local political parties and slates.
Civic and Media Literacy
Elections provide a great opportunity to practice civic and media literacy and ensure that the information we access, and share is accurate!
Be on the lookout for:
- Misinformation - false information that is shared, often inadvertently. For example, sharing a social media post that makes false claims without verifying the information.
- Disinformation - false information that is created and shared with the direct intention of misleading or manipulating the recipient of the information.
- Malinformation - false information that has some basis in fact, but has been removed from its original context, manipulated or exaggerated to be misleading.
If you’re not sure if something is factual, take a moment to check a second source or do a reverse image search to verify what you’re seeing or reading.
Check out opportunities at your local Library to learn more and practice identifying mis/disinformation.
Our Impact
At Calgary Public Library, our vision is Potentials Realized and we live that every day by serving the widest range of community members possible. The Library’s benefit to Calgarians is immeasurable as the scale of services respond to the widest range of needs through physical and virtual spaces that prioritize accessibility and nurture a sense of belonging.
Services directly respond to needs ranging from literacy at all ages and stages, adult foundational life skills, career planning, mental health, digital equity, newcomer supports, small business development, civic engagement, and so much more.
Did You Know?
- We have over 818,000 active members – that’s 58% of Calgarians!
- We’re growing every day – this year were averaging 365 new members each day and we added 132,000 new members last year
- Our 22 locations receive over 7 million visits annually
- The Library provides over 71,000 hours of service annually including seven days a week.
- Calgarians are readers – our annual circulation is over 15 million (9.1 million physical / 5.6 million digital)
- Free printing is one of our most popular services, with over 2.34 million print jobs in 2024
- We drive digital equity through millions of free Wi-Fi sessions and computer access
- More than 40,000 students attended one of our Virtual School Learning programs last year
- Community space matters and our free meeting rooms are popular – with 93 rooms across the city being booked over 84,000 times in a year!
A Growing System
As the first public library in Alberta, we are proud to have provided more than 113 years of service to the community. With our highest membership and circulation in our history – we know Calgarians need their Library more than ever and we need to continue growing with you.
With 22 locations across the city, we maintain over 550,000 square feet of public library space, with another 35,000 to be added before 2028. Four new locations will open in a few years: Belmont Library, Walden Library, Symons Valley Library, and Skyview Ranch Library.
