Bill S-27

The purpose of this enactment is to provide that in a by-election the hours of the polls are 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., whichever time zone the election is held in.

The provision for polls at different hours in different time zones is to ensure that polling hours are more contemporaneous across the country and that, so far as is practicable, results are not being released in the East while electors are still voting in the West.

This is not a problem in a by-election, so there is no need to have hours that may be less convenient for voters. 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. is generally considered to be the most convenient time period for voting.