Almost half of the eligible voters in Carleton cast ballots in advance polls, giving the closely watched Ottawa riding the highest voter turnout in the country — by a significant margin.
There are 105,091 people who are eligible to vote in Carleton, the riding that has long been held by Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre. During advance polling over the long Easter weekend, 43,394 of them voted.
The next highest turnout — in Saanich-Gulf Islands — was well back with 37,468 voters. Ottawa’s Nepean riding, where Liberal Leader Mark Carney is running — had the sixth highest voter turnout in the country with 32,689 advance ballots cast.
Across Canada, record numbers of voters turned out between April 18 and 21. Elections Canada says an estimated 7.28 million people voted. The previous record, in 2021, was 5.8 million. Many voters reported waits of an hour or much longer to vote.
High turnout at advance polling is often attributed to a wish for change on the part of voters.
Carleton, which stretches across the southern edge of Ottawa from Arnprior to near Cumberland, has become one of the highest-stakes ridings in the country during what is already a high-stakes election.
Not only did it have the highest early turnout in advance polling but it has the longest ballot in the country, and in Canadian history in a general election.
A protest by the so-called Longest Ballot committee helped dozens of candidates register to run in the riding that Poilievre has held for more than 20 years. As a result, there are 91 names on the ballot, making it almost a metre long.
The sheer volume of names and size of the ballot have created logistical challenges for election officials. Having a large percentage of votes cast in advance polls could help speed up what is expected to be delayed counting. Elections Canada officials have said they might allow counting of advance ballots to begin earlier than normal to avoid delays. That might have motivated some people to vote early.
The campaign has also turned into a tight race with Liberal challenger Bruce Fanjoy within an estimated five points of incumbent Poilievre, according to Liberal sources.
That has turned what has long been considered a safe Conservative seat into a tight race with both Liberals and Conservatives sending in extra resources in the final days to get out the vote.
Poilievre, who was once poised to become the next prime minister, now faces battles at the national and local levels, with most polls forecasting a Liberal win.
