Thousands of people were among the first to cast their ballots in this year’s municipal election during the first three of four Special Advance Voting Days offered by the City of Ottawa. Data from Elections Ottawa shows 6,724 ballots were cast on Thursday and another 6,854 were cast on Friday. Elections Ottawa said Saturday’s turnout saw 5,889 ballots cast, or 903 more than in 2022. Voters will still have the chance to cast their ballot early on Sunday until 8 p.m. The numbers show a 50 per cent increase over the first three Special Advance Voting Days in the 2022 municipal election. That year, a total of 3,957 ballots were cast on the first day, while 4,011 ballots were cast on the second and 4,986 on the third. A total of 18,876 ballots were cast during all four days of Special Advance Voting Days in 2022. Ottawa’s city clerk Caitlin Salter MacDonald says she can’t speculate as to why there’s been an increase in the turnout this year, but pointed to efforts the city made to make voters aware of their options. “We’ve been making an effort to get out the word about the many convenient opportunities for folks to vote in person, and make sure they have the information about what they need to vote. So, we’re glad that there are lots of folks taking advantage of this opportunity this weekend,” she told CTV News. Salter MacDonald says the increased turnout hasn’t led to much waiting in line at the polls. Some lines were seen on the Thursday, the first day of Special Advance Voting, but has been steady since. “Things have been going very smoothly over these four days. We haven’t run into any significant issues. Folks have been eager to vote,” she said. The busiest polling location during the last four days was the François Dupuis Recreation Centre on Portobello Boulevard. The city is hosting four days of Special Advance Voting Days for residents to vote for mayor, councillor and school board trustee. Ten locations are open across the city. The City of Ottawa says voters can cast a ballot at any of the locations for over the four days. You can cast a ballot at one of the following places: Polls are open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. If you don’t vote over the next four days, you can still cast a ballot on the Advance Voting Day on Friday, Oct. 16 and on election day on Monday, Oct. 26.
