Advanced polling begins Tuesday in Toronto and most of the GTA, but voters might want to plan ahead to make sure they can make the city's tight voting schedule.
Polling stations will be open in civic centres across Toronto on October 5 - 8 and on October 12 - 13 from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.
For those who work full time during the day, the city will also open up some polling stations during the weekend, on October 16 and 17 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. However, during this time, voters will have to go to the single polling station in their ward.
For a complete list of locations, click here.
Voters will have a few more hours to cast a ballot on October 25, Ontario's official municipal Election Day. Polling stations across several municipalities will be open from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m.
While Toronto's voting schedule may seem tight, statistics show having extended voting hours actually does little to boost voter turnout.
"My understanding of the literature is that voting hours and early voting tends not to have a huge impact on election races," said Renan Levine, a University of Toronto professor who specializes in election voting patterns.
"The people who tend to take advantage of early voting opportunities tend to be likely voters in the first place."
More days, less votes
In Canada, municipal elections in general tend to have a much lower voter turnout than federal or provincial elections.
A lot has been said about Toronto's low voter turnout but in fact, voter participation in the city is among the highest in the GTA, at about 40 per cent.
In contrast, Oshawa's voter turnout is one of the worst in Ontario at about 25 per cent participation in the 2006 municipal election.
Oshawa city council tried to combat that by introducing five additional days of advanced voting, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m., but it had little effect.
The voter turnout during those days was so poor (251 people out of 2,725 advanced voters) that the city clerk's office decided to revert to its original timeframe.
Now Oshawa is trying a different strategy, one with fewer days but longer hours.
On Tuesday, Oshawa opened its first advanced polling station at Legends Centre at 10 a.m. It will remain open until 8 p.m. Oshawa will then open a different polling station each day on Oct. 7, 9, 12, 14, 16 and 17. For a list of locations click here.
Pina Mancuso, Mississauga's election project manager, said the city also noticed few benefits to having late voting hours ahead of Election Day.
"We noticed in the past that people weren't coming after 4 p.m., especially on a Saturday night," said Mancuso. "For whatever reason, the only time people are out there voting until 8 p.m. is on election night."
Despite the statistics, Mancuso said Mississauga is trying to battle its dismal voter turnout (about 25 per cent in 2006) by opening advanced polls a few days earlier. Voters will also be able to vote on a Sunday for the first time.
Though other municipalities in the GTA are opening up polling stations this week, Mississauga's advanced polls won't be opened until Oct. 14. They will run each day until Oct. 17 from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Click here for details.
Voter apathy
Oshawa and Mississauga's efforts are no match for the blatant indifference most people have for municipal politics, says York University Political Science Professor Robert MacDermid.
"Ultimately, it's not about the availability of the polls but the lack of interest, the lack of involvement of voters, the inability of candidates to engage people -- that's the problem," he said.
Still, MacDermid applauded the efforts of municipalities who have taken steps to make the process easier for those who are interested in casting a ballot.
The city of Vaughan, which drew a 38 per cent voter turnout in the 2006 municipal election, has the longest voting hours in all of the GTA and one of the highest voter turnouts.
Advanced polling stations opened across the city on Monday, Oct. 4 and will remain open until October 10.
Two polling stations at the Vaughan Mills and Promenade Mall shopping centres will be open until 9 p.m. until Oct. 8.
For full details on Vaughan polling stations click here.
"Vaughan has certainly taken advanced polling a bit more seriously," said MacDermid. "It stands to reason that it will have a small effect. Those that already have an intention to vote will find it easier to do so and will be more likely to vote especially if they're away on Election Day."
Sandie Benitah is a Toronto journalist who has covered municipal politics for the CTV Toronto website and other publications. She is covering the issues of this election for CTV Toronto and CP24's websites.
