Voter participation in Inuit communities during the 2025 federal elections saw a decline, prompting calls from leaders for enhanced community engagement. Elections Canada recently released a report on the turnout among Indigenous communities in the 45th general election held in April 2025.
Over the past three federal elections, voter turnout in Inuit communities decreased from 43.6% in 2019 to 30.2% in 2025. In comparison, the overall voter turnout across Canada in the previous year stood at 69.5%. However, the trend varied across regions.
Notably, in the Inuvialuit region and Nunavut, Inuit voter turnout increased by 7.5% and 1.6%, respectively, compared to the 2021 federal election, with a turnout rate of around 35%. In the Nunatsiavut region of Newfoundland and Labrador, there was a slight 2.5% decrease from 2021.
The data for 2025 was significantly impacted by the turnout in Nunavik, part of the Abitibi–Baie-James–Nunavik–Eeyou riding in Quebec, where only 14.7% of Inuit voters cast their ballots, almost half of the 2021 turnout rate. Elections Canada attributed this, in part, to polling booths closing early or not opening at all in most of the region’s 14 villages due to adverse weather conditions and staffing shortages on voting day.
Acknowledging deficiencies in prior outreach efforts and engagement with Nunavik communities that had voting services, Elections Canada did not grant an interview to CBC News. Pita Aatami, the president of Makivvik representing Inuit in Nunavik, emphasized the need for election officials to actively engage with communities, stressing that it is their responsibility to ensure proper voting opportunities.
Aatami expressed concerns about voter apathy and proposed making voting mandatory, similar to the census, to increase voter turnout. He also suggested that implementing online voting, as done in Makivvik’s elections, could facilitate the process for individuals. Ultimately, Aatami emphasized the importance of personal responsibility in exercising the right to vote.