First day of advance voting in B.C. breaks record

Elections BC says Thursday was a record-breaking day for early voting in the province.

Advance polls opened across B.C. on the morning of Oct. 10 and will continue to be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. through Wednesday, with the exception of the Thanksgiving holiday Monday.

In a post to social media Friday, Elections BC says more voters than ever before turned up early.

“Yesterday 171,381 voters voted on the first day of advance voting. This is the most votes ever on an advance voting day in a B.C. election, beating the previous record of 126,491 in 2017,” said the government agency.

According to its reports, the Ladysmith-Oceanside electoral district, which includes Parksville and Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island, showed the most democratic enthusiasm of the day with 4,252 residents casting their ballots.

In the 2020 general election, Elections BC said just 52.86 per cent of all registered voters voted.

Thursday’s turnout reached nearly 10 per cent of the 1,898,553 votes in 2020.

If you are an eligible voter, you are also eligible for advance voting — you don’t need a special reason to do it.

To track down the closest location, check the ‘Where to Vote’ card that should have been mailed to you.

If you didn’t receive one, you can check the Elections BC website.

Whichever method you use, be sure to check the hours as not all advance voting places are open every day of the advance voting period.

Otherwise, the election date is Oct. 19.

—With files from Mike Lloyd