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The official result, recounted under each voting system.

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Learn how we vote now, and what might change if we voted differently

This tutorial is optional. You can watch a hockey game without knowing what offside means. It just makes more sense once you do. Look around the other tabs whenever you like: this page stays where it is, and the tutorial links on the other pages bring you back to it.

Overall Results

This brief tutorial tells you what you need to know to get the most out of the other tabs for this election. The way we vote shapes who wins power, and how much influence each of our votes has on the outcome. The Overall Results and Your Riding tabs use diagrams to show those effects.

What voting systems might we consider using?

Canada uses First-Past-The-Post. So do the United Kingdom and the United States.

No country in the European Union counts a national election that way. The most common voting system there is List Proportional Representation, which is widely used across northern European nations. However, the approaches most commonly proposed for use in Canada include the Single Transferable Vote (used in Ireland and various bodies in Australia, and recommended by the BC Citizens’ Assembly) and Mixed-Member Proportional (used in Germany and New Zealand, and recommended by the Ontario Citizens’ Assembly). We model these three main options, as well as some variants, described below.

Each of these systems is briefly described below. The cards and the coloured icons summarize which of three key features each system has: (1) single- or multi-member districts, (2) regional top-up seats, and (3) “mark an X” or ranked ballots.

How to read the icons

Each of the voting systems we model is paired with an icon that summarizes its main features. These icons answer the four questions shown below.

How does your vote count?

You chose the candidate
Both at once
You chose a party

The split icon represents single-member seats: with First-Past-The-Post and MMP, there’s only one candidate from each party.

  1. How many seats per district?

    One box is a single-member district: the riding elects one person. Two boxes mean a multi-member district, where a region elects several members together.

  2. How do you mark your ballot?

    An X means you mark a single choice. Numbers mean a ranked ballot: you put a 1 beside your top choice, a 2 beside your second, and so on.

  3. Are there regional top-up seats?

    A box with a plus sign indicates that top-up seats are awarded across a region to bring each party’s seat total closer to its share of the vote.

  4. How does your vote count?

    Green means you chose the person who took the seat. Orange means your vote counted for a party, but not for a candidate you chose. The split box means there is only one candidate per party: you cannot choose one without the other.

The main systems

Now you can read the icons, here are the systems themselves. Each card carries its icon, the two choices that define it, and the places that use it. Tap one to read how it counts.

First-Past-The-Post

This is our current system. Each riding elects one member. Voters mark a single X beside one candidate, and whoever collects the most votes takes the seat, even with far less than half of them, and however many votes the losing candidates gathered between them.

Three modified systems we also model

List PR, STV and MMP are the main options, but the first two can also use top-up seats. Adding one for a small region, two for a middling one and three for the largest can even out the district results and lower the bar for smaller parties. And we could use a ranked ballot in single-member districts. This is called the Alternative Vote (AV); former Prime Minister Trudeau wanted this system. We’ve modelled these three as well, so keep an eye out for toggles that let you see what effect these would have.

More on how the voting systems differ

The idea behind the three main alternatives is that as many voters as possible should help elect a representative who shares their political views. Each does it by replacing the single-member riding with a way to elect more than one representative from each geographic region, and there are two ways to do that.

The difference between List PR & STV? The ballot.

Mark one X
Candidate 1
Candidate 2
Candidate 3
Rank them
Candidate 1
Candidate 2
Candidate 3

Marking one X records nothing about the candidates you did not pick, so a count has nowhere to move your vote. Ranking records your order, which lets a count transfer your vote when your first choice is out or already elected.

  1. Multi-member districts

    The approach List PR and STV use. Several adjacent ridings are grouped into one district, usually three to five seats in proposals for Canada, and that district elects a set of representatives. Voters who disagree with each other can each elect someone. Proposals for Canada usually suggest three to five seats a district. VoteLab models two to six, with the larger districts in cities.

  2. Top-up seats

    The approach MMP uses. Ridings are grouped into regions of roughly 10 to 20 seats, and the seats split in two. About half the seats are single-member and are counted as they are now; the rest are awarded as top-ups across the region, so each party ends up with about the share of seats its votes earned. Proposals for Canada usually keep about 60% of a region local. VoteLab models an even split, with the top-up seats added on top of pairs of today’s ridings.

  3. The difference between List PR & STV? The ballot.

    List PR asks you to mark a single X. STV uses a ranked ballot, which lets you order the candidates from most preferred down. If your first choice does not have the support to win, your ballot transfers to your next choice.

Now: how do we assess the results?

Knowing how a system counts is not the same as knowing how it affects the results of an election. The three figures that follow are the three main ways we assess that, and every one of them compares the system we use today against one of the alternatives you just met.

Let’s start with the first question: whose vote actually helped elect someone?

How many voters helped elect someone?

The main point of voting in a representative democracy is to choose who represents you. The diagram below illustrates how many voters cast votes that help elect someone.

STV+ (STV with regional top-ups)

96%
Represented voters

Only about 4% of voters did not help elect anyone.

What the colours mean here

  • Helped elect someone, and chose which candidate 63%
  • Elected a lower choice, and chose which candidate 27%
  • Represented through their party 7%
  • Did not elect anyone 4%

  1. Twenty people, one country

    Each figure is 5% of voters. Coloured icons show how many voters helped elect someone. Grey ones show how many did not.

  2. Nearly half are grey

    Grey voters voted in their own riding. Their ballots were counted. But their votes had no effect on who was elected. That leaves about half the voters without a representative who shares their political views.

  3. Change the counting rule

    Same voters, same political views. With this different way of voting, voters choose between candidates from the same party, and almost all help elect a representative.

  4. Directly or through a party

    The colours say HOW a voter helped elect someone. If you voted for a specific candidate and they’re elected, we say they’re directly elected. If your vote counted for a party, but not the elected candidate, we say they’re indirectly elected.

  5. First choice or a later one

    Some systems let voters choose between candidates from the same party, and some let them rank their choices, so that a vote can still help elect a lower choice when the first cannot win. Darker colours are a top choice, lighter ones a later choice.

Worked from the real result of the Canada 2025 federal election.

How do votes turn into seats?

A common way of thinking about the results of an election is how the share of votes cast for candidates from the various parties maps to the number of seats those parties won. We show this with a “parliamentary map” diagram; the one below is from the Québec 2022 general election.

Single Transferable Vote

half the voteshalf the seats

41%

Votes

50%

Seats

+9%

gap

Coalition Avenir Québec

 SeatsVotes
Coalition Avenir Québec63 (50%)41%
Parti Québécois21 (17%)15%
Parti libéral du Québec17 (14%)14%
Québec solidaire17 (14%)15%
Parti conservateur du Québec7 (6%)13%

  1. 1The shaded wedges are the votes

    Each party’s wedge corresponds to the share of the votes its candidates earned. The vertical dashed line indicates half the votes. The highlighted box shows the vote share for the party that won the most seats.

  2. 2The dots are the seats won

    Each solid dot is a seat won. Dots that spill outside the coloured arc indicate a party won more seats than its vote share. Empty dots show how many fewer seats a party won than its vote share might warrant. The highlighted box now shows that same party’s seat share.

  3. 340% of votes, 70% of seats

    The solid line marks half the seats. When it sits to the left of the “half the votes” line, it took less than half the vote to win half the seats. Here, the leading party won over two-thirds of the seats with just over 40% of the vote.

  4. Change the counting rule

    The voters and their political views don’t change, but the seat shares do. Here, they correspond more closely to the vote shares, and the leading party is cut back to the barest majority of seats on well under a majority of the vote.

Worked from the real result of the Québec 2022 general election.

How does the seat distribution change?

The totals on the parliamentary map show how many seats each party won, but they do not say where. To show that, we use a map representation called a cartogram that shows every seat as a hexagon, regardless of the size of the riding. We colour each one based on the party affiliation of the candidate who won the seat.

STV+ (STV with regional top-ups)

55%

largest party’s share

Vancouver & North Shore

#1 + #2 + #3 + #4 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#1 + #2 + #3 + #4 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#1 + #2 + #3 + #4 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#1 + #2 + #3 + #4 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#5 + #6 + #7 + #8 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#5 + #6 + #7 + #8 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#5 + #6 + #7 + #8 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#5 + #6 + #7 + #8 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#9 + #10 + #11 + #12 + #13 + #14 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#9 + #10 + #11 + #12 + #13 + #14 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#9 + #10 + #11 + #12 + #13 + #14 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#9 + #10 + #11 + #12 + #13 + #14 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#9 + #10 + #11 + #12 + #13 + #14 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#9 + #10 + #11 + #12 + #13 + #14 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#15 + #16 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#15 + #16 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#17 + #18 + #19 + #20 + #21 5 seats: BC NDP 3 · Conservative 2#17 + #18 + #19 + #20 + #21 5 seats: BC NDP 3 · Conservative 2#17 + #18 + #19 + #20 + #21 5 seats: BC NDP 3 · Conservative 2#17 + #18 + #19 + #20 + #21 5 seats: BC NDP 3 · Conservative 2#17 + #18 + #19 + #20 + #21 5 seats: BC NDP 3 · Conservative 2#22 + #23 + #24 + #25 + #26 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#22 + #23 + #24 + #25 + #26 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#22 + #23 + #24 + #25 + #26 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#22 + #23 + #24 + #25 + #26 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#22 + #23 + #24 + #25 + #26 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#27 + #28 + #29 + #30 + #31 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#27 + #28 + #29 + #30 + #31 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#27 + #28 + #29 + #30 + #31 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#27 + #28 + #29 + #30 + #31 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#27 + #28 + #29 + #30 + #31 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#32 + #33 + #34 + #35 + #36 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#32 + #33 + #34 + #35 + #36 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#32 + #33 + #34 + #35 + #36 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#32 + #33 + #34 + #35 + #36 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#32 + #33 + #34 + #35 + #36 5 seats: Conservative 3 · BC NDP 2#37 + #38 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#37 + #38 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#39 1 seat: BC NDP 1#40 + #41 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#40 + #41 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#42 + #43 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#42 + #43 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#44 + #45 2 seats: Conservative 2#44 + #45 2 seats: Conservative 2#46 + #47 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#46 + #47 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#48 + #49 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#48 + #49 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#50 + #51 + #52 3 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 1#50 + #51 + #52 3 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 1#50 + #51 + #52 3 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 1#53 + #54 + #55 + #56 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#53 + #54 + #55 + #56 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#53 + #54 + #55 + #56 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#53 + #54 + #55 + #56 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#57 + #58 + #59 3 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1#57 + #58 + #59 3 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1#57 + #58 + #59 3 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1#60 + #61 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#60 + #61 2 seats: Conservative 1 · BC NDP 1#62 + #63 + #64 + #65 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#62 + #63 + #64 + #65 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#62 + #63 + #64 + #65 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#62 + #63 + #64 + #65 4 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2#66 + #67 + #68 3 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1#66 + #67 + #68 3 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1#66 + #67 + #68 3 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1#69 + #70 + #71 + #72 4 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1 · BC Green 1#69 + #70 + #71 + #72 4 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1 · BC Green 1#69 + #70 + #71 + #72 4 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1 · BC Green 1#69 + #70 + #71 + #72 4 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1 · BC Green 1#73 + #74 + #75 + #76 4 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1 · BC Green 1#73 + #74 + #75 + #76 4 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1 · BC Green 1#73 + #74 + #75 + #76 4 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1 · BC Green 1#73 + #74 + #75 + #76 4 seats: BC NDP 2 · Conservative 1 · BC Green 1#77 + #78 + #79 + #80 + #81 + #82 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#77 + #78 + #79 + #80 + #81 + #82 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#77 + #78 + #79 + #80 + #81 + #82 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#77 + #78 + #79 + #80 + #81 + #82 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#77 + #78 + #79 + #80 + #81 + #82 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#77 + #78 + #79 + #80 + #81 + #82 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#83 + #84 + #85 + #86 + #87 5 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2 · BC Green 1#83 + #84 + #85 + #86 + #87 5 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2 · BC Green 1#83 + #84 + #85 + #86 + #87 5 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2 · BC Green 1#83 + #84 + #85 + #86 + #87 5 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2 · BC Green 1#83 + #84 + #85 + #86 + #87 5 seats: Conservative 2 · BC NDP 2 · BC Green 1#88 + #89 + #90 + #91 + #92 + #93 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#88 + #89 + #90 + #91 + #92 + #93 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#88 + #89 + #90 + #91 + #92 + #93 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#88 + #89 + #90 + #91 + #92 + #93 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#88 + #89 + #90 + #91 + #92 + #93 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2#88 + #89 + #90 + #91 + #92 + #93 6 seats: BC NDP 4 · Conservative 2

your riding

  1. Every seat, one hexagon

    Each hexagon is a single seat, placed roughly where it sits on the map and coloured by the party that won it. We show each seat as an equal-sized hexagon rather than as the riding’s geographical boundaries, to emphasize that each seat is supposed to represent approximately the same number of voters.

  2. Whole regions, one colour

    First-Past-The-Post is a “winner-takes-all” system that tends to hand one party most or all of the seats in a region. Here, one party won 82% of the seats on 53% of the vote.

  3. One region, up close

    Here’s that region on its own, redrawn so its ridings sit side-by-side, one hexagon each. The black boundaries show there’s one seat per riding.

  4. Say this riding is yours

    Each hexagon is one riding. The lit one is Powell River-Sunshine Coast. Keep an eye on how it changes with different voting systems.

  5. Same voters, different system

    Here’s the same region shown under a different voting system. Notice the changes: the leading party won fewer seats, better matching its regional vote share, and there are more opposition members elected across the region. The black outlines have regrouped the ridings into the districts you would vote in locally, and the solid block is the district your riding joins.

  6. Top-up seats

    The gold-ringed hexes below the region are its top-up seats, awarded across the whole region rather than won in any one riding. These further balance out the results over the region.

Measuring the gap between votes and seats

On the results pages each map carries a regional polarization score: the gap between votes and seats, measured within each region on its own and then averaged. It is measured region by region rather than across the whole election because a gap in one region can be cancelled out by an opposite gap in another, which would leave a single election-wide figure looking better than any region actually was. It is the measure statisticians call the Gallagher index, applied one region at a time.

It runs from 0, where the seats match the votes exactly, upward. Values below 5 are usually considered quite balanced; values above 15 or 20 mark a large gap between votes and seats.

What happens in your local district?

The three previous views all focus on the election results as a whole. This last section shows how we illustrate the results in your local district: the one you would vote in, what ballot you would use, and how your vote is counted locally.

Cowichan—Malahat—Langford

If you votedTodaySTV+
Conservative2.17×0.66×
New Democrats00.90×
Liberal00.90×
Green01.03×

1.00× is a fair share of the influence: one voter, one seat’s worth. Above 1.00× your ballot did more than its share to elect someone; 0 means it elected nobody.

  1. A single-member district ballot

    This is what ballots currently look like. There’s one candidate from each party and you mark an X beside one of them. This is used for First-Past-The-Post and MMP.

  2. A multi-member district ballot

    This is what a ballot for a multi-member district would look like, showing candidates drawn from the real election. Your riding is one of the 4 outlined in solid colours, and this district elects 4 members between them, so most parties put forward more than one candidate. Depending on the system, you’d either mark one X for List PR, or rank one or more candidates in your order of preference for STV.

  3. Who’s elected in your region

    This image summarizes the winners in your region. Winners in your own district are shown in solid colours, while those elected in other districts are shown in lighter shades. The table shows the seats won in your region by each party.

  4. How do the vote and seat shares relate?

    Each shaded band shows the vote shares by party. If a figure stands on a white background, that party won more seats than its vote share. If there’s extra shading, that party won fewer seats than its vote share. We show the exact vote share in the table.

  5. The same votes, different system

    This figure shows what might happen under a different voting system, in this case STV+. The region’s top-up seat is shown with a glow behind it, and in the table as a golden figure. Because of the top-up, the seat and vote shares line up more closely.

  6. What your own vote was worth

    Your vote has a different impact under different systems. We call this your Personal Vote Impact (PVI). If your vote had the influence of an average voter, its value is 1. Under First-Past-The-Post a vote for the winner is typically worth around 2, though it varies riding by riding. Under the other systems, influence is spread more evenly. Every party that stood in this riding is listed, because the answer depends on who you backed.

Worked from the real result of the Canada 2025 federal election.

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