The voters of Metro Vancouver will be seeing plenty of change on Saturday thanks to an unprecedented number of mayoral vacancies.

Only eight of the region's 21 mayors are running for re-election, meaning at least 13 municipalities are in for new leadership.

That includes Vancouver, where Gregor Robertson is bowing out after 10 years in the city's top job, and no fewer than 21 candidates are vying to replace him.

The winner could be the candidate with the most compelling vision for tackling the region's housing problems – poll after poll in the lead-up to the election indicated housing was the number one issue among voters.

Whether housing issues get voters fired up enough to actually show up at the polls has yet to be seen, but advanced polling numbers are promising.

According to the City of Vancouver, more than 48,000 people cast an advanced ballot this month, which is 27 per cent more than the 38,400 who voted early in 2014.

That election saw just 43 per cent of eligible voters turn up, and even that was an improvement over the dismal 35 per cent participation recorded in 2011.

Other Metro Vancouver mayors who are stepping down include Surrey's Linda Hepner, Delta's Lois Jackson, Port Coquitlam's Greg Moore, Langley's Ted Schaffer, Maple Ridge's Nicole Read, White Rock's Wayne Baldwin, Belcarra's Ralph Drew, Bowen Island's Murray Skeels, Lions Bay's Karl Buhr, West Vancouver's Michael Smith, Darrell Mussatto from the City of North Vancouver and Richard Walton of the District of North Vancouver.

Across the region, there are 537 mayoral and council candidates vying for votes. When you include the park board and school board candidates, Vancouver voters were faced with a daunting 158 names on their ballot Saturday.

Some were also caught off guard by additional questions on the back asking their permission for $300 million worth of capital spending projects, including repairs to bridges, community centres and parks. 

For the first time since the early 1990s, the candidates' names were listed randomly, rather than alphabetically.

Polls close at 8 p.m. across the region. To watch updates coming in live, watch CTV Vancouver's Election 2018 TV special airing from 7 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., or visit our Elections 2018 microsite.