Eight GTA ridings will have half as many polling sites for this election, COVID-19 may be to blame
Voters in the Greater Toronto Area may have further to go in order to cast their ballots during the upcoming federal election thanks to a reduction in polling stations that is being largely attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Elections Canada has secured more than 14,000 polling sites for Sept. 20, which is an approximately seven per cent reduction from 2019.
But in the GTA the effect could be even more pronounced with many ridings losing dozens of polling sites.
In Toronto Centre, which has nearly 104,000 residents, there will be only 22 polling sites, including seven advance polls that opened today. That is compared to 102 in 2019.
Another downtown riding, Spadina Fort-York, is also among the most heavily impacted. It will see its number of polling stations decrease from 65 to 24, a roughly 63 per cent drop.
A spokesperson for Elections Canada tells CP24 that the reason for the loss of polling stations is partly due to an effort to find larger locations to allow for physical distancing.
The spokesperson also noted that “there are fewer facilities available for polling places in the current pandemic context.”
The Toronto Catholic District School Board, for example, voted last month not to allow its buildings to be used as polling stations amid concerns about large crowds during the COVID-19 pandemic. That decision alone left Elections Canada with 94 fewer sites to use in Toronto.
“Voters may have to travel a little longer than in the past to cast their ballot and may be asked to wait outside to respect physical distancing measures,” the spokesperson said.
Eight GTA ridings have seen polling stations reduced by more than 50 per cent
Elections Canada says that its returning officers aimed to recruit approximately the same number of poll workers for the fall election as they did in 2019, even with the reduction in polling stations.
They say that the number of advance polls is also comparable with an increase in individual desks at many polling sites.
However, for voters looking to cast their ballot it is likely that they will have further to go and this is particularly true in the GTA.
In fact there are a total of eight GTA ridings that have had their total number of polling sites, including advance voting locations, reduced by more than half. Another nine GTA ridings have more than 40 per cent fewer polling sites than they did in 2019.
Meanwhile, there are four GTA ridings that will see an increase in their number of polling sites compared to 2019 - Mississauga-Streetsville (17.8 per cent), Markham-Unionville (7.2 per cent), Mississauga Centre (4.88 per cent) and Etobicoke Lakeshore (1.32 per cent)
Here is a list of the GTA ridings that are among the most impacted:
- Toronto Centre (22 versus 102 in 2019, a 78.4 per cent drop)
- Spadina-Fort York (24 versus 65 in 2019, a 64 per cent drop)
- University-Rosedale (31 versus 82 in 2019, a 63 per cent drop)
- Aurora - Oak Ridges - Richmond Hill (17 versus 44 in 2019, a 62.2 per cent drop)
- King – Vaughan (21 versus 54 in 2019, a 61.4 per cent drop)
- Etobicoke North (19 versus 43 in 2019, a 61.1 per cent drop)
- Vaughan-Woodbrige (16 versus 35 in 2019, a 54.3 per cent drop)
- Scarborouth Southwest (33 versus 71 in 2019, a 53.5 per cent drop)
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Prime minister faces mounting pressure to step aside from inside caucus
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will face mounting pressure from his caucus this week to step down from the leadership of the Liberal party.
Suspect threw coffee at woman’s vehicle then shot at her windshield: police
Police are looking for a suspect who allegedly threw a coffee at a woman’s vehicle and then shot at her windshield following some sort of dispute that began at a Tim Hortons in Pickering on Friday morning.
Ex-principal of Ontario Christian school charged with sex assault
The former principal of a Christian school in Ontario's Niagara Region has been arrested and charged with sexual assault.
What's open and closed this Thanksgiving in Canada
Thanksgiving Day is a federal statutory holiday in Canada, and falls on Monday, Oct. 14 this year. Here's what to know about what is open this Monday.
Police identify Toronto victim of alleged serial killer
Toronto police have identified the woman who was allegedly killed by a suspected serial killer earlier this month.
As Hezbollah and Israel battle on the border, Lebanon's army watches from the sidelines
Since Israel launched its ground invasion of Lebanon, Israeli forces and Hezbollah militants have clashed along the border while the Lebanese army has largely stood on the sidelines.
Marital rape is still not outlawed in India. Changing that would be ‘excessively harsh,’ government argues
Criminalizing marital rape would be 'excessively harsh,' the Indian government has said, in a blow to campaigners ahead of a long-awaited Supreme Court decision that will affect hundreds of millions of people in India for generations.
Parents across GTA warned by some private daycares that they may pull out of $10-a-day program
Parents at some private, for-profit daycares across the GTA are being warned that their fees could soon be doubling as operators consider pulling out of the national $10-a-day child-care program.
Bloc won't hold Liberals 'hostage' over seniors' benefits: cabinet minister
Liberal cabinet minister Steven Guilbeault says the Liberals will not be 'held hostage' by the Bloc Quebecois' demand to expand Old Age Security to more seniors.