EDMONTON- Election Day is just around the corner. Edmontonians will cast their ballots to elect a new mayor and council on Monday.
Voter apathy- particularly amongst the younger generation- has been an issue in the past couple of municipal elections. In 2010, 33 per cent of eligible voters cast their ballots. In 2007, voter turnout was just 27 per cent.
“Traditionally, voter turnout has been abysmal for municipal elections,” said MacEwan University Political Scientist Chaldeans Mensah.
However, Mensah believes with three clear front-runners in the race for mayor, this time around could be a different story.
“Edmontonians don’t want an election where it’s a predetermined contest,” he explained. “The contest is a bit in doubt. I think that is a recipe for increasing voter turnout.”
In hopes of removing barriers for Edmontonians, the City offered 10 full days of advance voting, which came to a close Saturday evening. Edmonton Elections was very pleased with the turnout over the first five days.
“About 8,500 voters voted in the first week, compared to about 6,200 in 2010,” said Alayne Sinclair, returning officer with the City of Edmonton.
In total, 23,076 people cast their ballot in the advance polls this year; 8,438 during the first week and 14,638 during the second week.
Casting his early ballot at City Hall Saturday morning, Stuart Brown said he’s hopeful Edmontonians will show up to the polls come Monday.
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“It’s always good to see people turn up and cast their voice on what matters most. It’s their city, it’s their home. It should matter.”
“I definitely have strong opinions about who I don’t want to see there, so if I don’t vote and that person gets in then that’s my fault, right?” added Tanya Chrapko, who also voted at City Hall Saturday.
Edmonton Elections has also seen an increase in the number of mail-in ballots requested this year. Over 2,800 mail-in ballots have been requested this year, compared to 750 in 2010.
Advance polling stations were also set up at post secondary institutions, another first for Edmonton.
“That’s huge. I think that’s very helpful,” said Mensah. “Young people still have to be energized to participate… I think any little effort to get young people involved in politics and to participate is positive.”
But, it doesn’t all come down to the voters. Mensah believes voter turnout also depends on which candidate can actually mobilize their supporters.
“We have experienced people running, we have people with new vision for the city, we have people wanting to go back to the basics. So the choices are clear cut,” he explained. “It’s going to be dependent on whether these leading candidates are able to get their core supporters to the ballot box.”
Voting stations will be open from 9:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. on Monday. For a list of voting locations visit the City of Edmonton’s website.
Global News will have up to the minute live Edmonton election results as well as live streaming video and a live blog beginning Monday Oct. 21 at 8:00 p.m. when polls close.
With files from Shannon Greer, Global News.
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