Advance polling finished

If advance polling numbers are any indicator, there may be less people voting in Saturday's Westside Municipal Election than voted in the Governance Referendum last June.

On Tuesday, the second and final day for the advance poll, 825 people cast advance votes, bringing the total for the two advance poll days to 1,485. In the advance polling for June's referendum there was a total of 2,077 votes cast ahead of time, almost 600 more than this month's advance polls.

The other election in play, that for Director of the Central Okanagan West Electoral Area, registered a total of 78 votes in the two days of advance polling.

In June, 11,586 people cast ballots in the governance referendum, 48.7% of those eligible.

The Regional District estimates about 22,564 people are eligible to vote, about 1,200 fewer than during the June referendum. Residents who live on Westbank First Nations reserves #9 & #10 are not eligible. Chief Election Officer for the District, Lyla Lindsay, is encouraging everyone who is entitled to vote to make sure their voice is heard in Saturday's election.

“Voters must bring along two pieces of ID proving who they are and their current residence,” says Lindsay. “One of those must have their signature.”

Lindsay says that anyone unable to get out of their vehicle can still vote, as they can request an election official at any of the polling stations bring a ballot to them.

Regional District Communications Coordinator Bruce Smith says, “If people have any questions about voting and qualifications and whether they live within the Westside District Municipality or Central Okanagan West Electoral Area they can check out the Westside Elections Information link on the Regional District website, email us at [email protected] or call us prior to the 17th at 763-4918. On General Voting Day only, while the polls are open, people may call the Election Day Hotline at 718-0027.”