Winnipeggers flocking to advance polls, election official says

Winnipeggers are flocking to advance polls in greater numbers than they did in the 2014 election.

During the first 10 days ofadvance voting in the 2018 municipal election, 12,047 Winnipeggersvisited a polling station, senior election official Marc Lemoine said Thursday.

That's up from 9,146 votes during the first 10 days of advance polling in the 2014 race, for an increase of 32 per cent.

• Record number of Winnipeggers vote in advance polls

Lemoinesays he's not sure why more voters are turning up ahead of time to vote.

"It's hard to know. We're trying to make people aware they can votein advance," he said Thursday in an interview."The lineups are shorter at advance polling than they will be between 4 and 8 p.m. on election day."

In 2014, a total of 30,619 Winnipeggers voted in advance. That represented 13 per cent of the total vote count of235,455in that election.

This year's ballot presents options for mayor, councillor and school trustee as well as a yes-or-no question on reopening Portage and Main to pedestrians.

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Advance polls are open at city hall every day exceptSunday until Oct. 19. Advance polls are also open at community centres, shopping malls, universities and other locations listed on the City of Winnipeg's election website.