World News – CA – ‘Slow’ turnout in Saanich North and the Islands – Victoria News

The time remaining to vote in the 2020 provincial election may have passed to a few hours, but the three candidates vying for Saanich North and the Islands are still using them for a last minute campaign but also for recreation before the results start to arrive

Outgoing MP Adam Olsen joined a group of volunteers to stand at the corner of Beacon Avenue and Resthaven Drive for a waving sign with less than two and a half hours to vote This last minute campaign event is taking place against a background of at least 12,083 voters who have already voted in advance 16,136 other residents had also requested a parcel post

These numbers mean that more than half of eligible voters in the constituency may have already voted (assuming all mailings will be returned) when the polling gates close at 8 p.m. These numbers also mean that the result election may not be known the day before the election

« So who knows what’s going to happen tonight, » said Olsen, who declined to make a prediction. « I can predict we’re going to have a good result, » he said. « We have did everything we could « 

Like Olsen, British Columbia Liberal candidate Stephen Roberts is also aware of the low in-person turnout, saying he’s not sure what impact it will have on the end result

Roberts, for his part, spent the morning on Salt Spring Island before spending the rest of the day in Sidney to make sure people get out to vote during this historic election. New Democrat Zeb King also spent part of Saturday campaigning on the phone, but also spent time in his backyard. « I have a lot of gardening to catch up, » he says « Planting garlic is on my agenda for next week »

By then, maybe Saanich North and Islanders voters will know who their MP will be as a result of this unprecedented election that in many ways did not feel and looked like an election. typical

But when it comes to Saturday’s ballot turnout, ‘slow’ was the word used by Peter Mason, District Election Officer for Saanich North and Islands

Mason had spent the morning and early afternoon visiting several of the 23 polling stations in the constituency and possibly with the exception of Sidney’s Mary Winspear polling station, where he described participation as « more regular », participation was, well, slow

There are 50,488 registered voters spread across the three main communities of the Saanich Peninsula, Salt Spring Island and four smaller Southern Gulf Islands Mason estimates that around 10,000 residents will have voted when the local polling stations (15 on the Saanich Peninsula, four on Saltspring Island and one each on the four small islands) close their doors, far from the previous elections.

This reality of course reflects the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which inspired an unprecedented surge in advanced voting.Before election day, 12,083 residents had participated in advance polls in Saanich North and the islands

READ MORE: Polling stations see constant flow of voters for BC On election day, no long lines

Mason also points out the high share of email packets requested According to Elections BC, 16,136 constituency residents have requested a package. Even though not all of them will find their way back to Elections BC, Mason estimates that about 12,600 residents will vote by mail, which means nearly 25,000 residents may already have voted Based on a historic turnout for the constituency of around 70%, this figure means that around 10,000 voters could have physically voted in person, Mason said.

« There was hardly anyone there, » said Nancy Chown, who voted with her husband Roger at the Sidney’s Mary Winspear Center

« It was really easy, » Toni Lee added, minutes later after voting. The abundance of space between individual polling stations and a small number of voters made her feel very at home. comfortable voting in person, she said

Chrystal Biyak, resident of the Saanich center, also felt comfortable voting in person, praising the security measures at her polling station, before coming to Sidney for the afternoon, where the streets were busy with residents enjoying the sunny weather and the queue operations outside popular businesses like Sidney Bakery took much longer than anything in the polling stations visited

Mason, for his part, said he had not received any reports of incidents at polling stations regarding COVID-19 measures

The public, he said, has been very respectful « We’ve been in this pandemic long enough for people to catch it, » he said

Chris Locker, who took his three-year-old son Matthew and his mother-in-law to the Lutheran Peace Church in Sidney, said the process couldn’t have been easier

Although outside observers may have struggled to discern that an election was underway, some voters did not hesitate to speak about their motives

Concerns about the province’s financial situation was a motivator behind many votes. Other issues including homelessness, the opioid crisis, the response to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the Indigenous and environmental issues drove voters to the polls

And the final result of this election will not be known on Saturday evening The high number of advance and postal ballots will make it difficult to proclaim the winners of the local constituencies long after the day before the elections

Black Press Media will be with you on Election Day, bringing you live coverage of our local candidates as the election results arrive. Find coverage of other Greater Victoria ridings by clicking on the link below- below

Seven constituencies encompass Greater Victoria with a total of 27 candidates vying for your vote

In Saanich North and the Islands, Zeb King (NDP), Adam Olsen (green) and Stephen Roberts (Liberal) are vying for your vote Read more about these candidates here

In Saanich South, Kate O’Connor, Lana Popham and Rishi Sharma are on the ballot Read more about these candidates here

In the constituency of Oak Bay-Gordon Head, Florian Castle, Nicole Duncan, Roxanne Helme and Murray Rankin are vying for your vote Read more about these candidates here

In Victoria-Swan Lake, Rob Fleming, Annemieke Holthuis, David Somerville, Walt Parsons and Jenn Smith complete the ballot Find out more about these candidates here

Karen Bill, Grace Lore, Jenn Neilson and Jordan Reichert run at Victoria-Beacon Hill Learn more about these candidates here

In the riding of Esquimalt-Metchosin – which also includes Colwood – Mitzi Dean, Andy MacKinnon, Desta McPherson and RJ Senko go head to head Learn more about these candidates here

In the other West Shore riding, Langford-Juan de Fuca, Gord Baird, Kelly Darwin, John Horgan and Tyson Riel Strandlund are vying for your vote Read more about these candidates here

Today is the last day to vote in BC election Polling stations are open in Greater Victoria from 8 am until 8 pm

Voter information cards mailed out will show the location of assigned polling stations in your community If you haven’t received a card you can still vote, find your assigned polling station by line before JCca elections using your postal code

EDITOR’S NOTE: Due to the ongoing pandemic, Elections BC estimates that around 35% of voters used mail-in ballots, which will be counted from November 6 This means that the results of the tonight’s election could change

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Saanich North and the Islands, Saanich, Victoria, 42nd general election in British Columbia