(EverythingGP file photo)

By Abby Zieverink

Municipal Election

Advance voting shifts to Teresa Sargent Hall due to high turnout

Oct 12, 2021 | 4:34 PM

With the first weekend of advance voting complete for the City of Grande Prairie Municipal Election, city officials say the advance vote location has shifted.

Returning Officer and City Clerk for the City of Grande Prairie Arlene Karbashewski says roughly 1000 residents in the Swan City voted on October 8 and 9, which is an estimated 65 per cent increase compared to the first two days of the 2017 municipal election.

“We did an estimate by just taking the average amount of voters who voted over the four days (in 2017) and then divided it. We did our best to just kind of get an estimate of what the two days of voting would look like from 2017 based on the full four-day number.”

With that increased demand, Karbashewski says the advance vote polling location will now be moved to the Teresa Sargent Hall in the Montrose Cultural Centre for advance voting on October 15 and 16.

“It allows the city to increase the number of voters who can vote at one time, it gives us more space to be able to comply with the provincial guidelines and COVID protocols and it’s generally, just a nicer venue for parking and voter access,” said Karbashewski.

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She says the city is very pleased with the increase.

“We were very excited to see the increase in voter turnout. Typically we would see in the past when there’s been a provincial or federal election within the same year, voter turnout is typically decreased.”

Anyone who wants to vote must be at least 18 years old, a Canadian citizen, and a resident of Grande Prairie. They must also bring their ID to the polling place.

Residents looking to cast their ballot can do so between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. on October 15 and 16.

People can vote for one candidate for mayor, up to eight for city council, up to seven for public school trustee or five for Catholic school board trustee in Ward 1.

A Senate election and two referendum questions are also on the ballot.

To learn more about the candidates running for mayor and council, check out EverythingGP’s municipal election page. There you will find candidate profiles, as well as links to the candidates’ social media pages and websites.

Election Day is Monday, October 18.

For mobility drop-off and access at the hall, the North (main) entrance is available.