Advance voting begins for Vancouver election with 'daunting' ballot
The ballot in Vancouver’s city election is one of the longest in the country, and voters are being encouraged to take advantage of advance polls that began opening Saturday.
Not only is voting early a good way to avoid long lines, it may also give voters extra time to complete a ballot that’s described as rather intimidating.
“Oh my gosh, it is absolutely daunting," said Danielle Johnston, manager of democratic engagement for the City of Vancouver.
“This is literally my job and I find it daunting,” she admitted.
There are 137 candidates running for various positions, and voters are being asked to choose 10 city councillors, seven park board commissioners, nine school trustees and one mayor.
There are also three capital plan questions.
“If you are a well-informed voter, you’ll know who you’re choosing, but it can be quite complicated for somebody who’s doing it for the first time,” said pollster Mario Canseco.
In a bid to make things equitable, candidates are listed randomly, not alphabetically. That means it will likely take voters longer to find their preferred candidates.
There is no need to vote in every category, nor is their a need to vote for all 10 councillors or all seven park board commissioners, and so on.
“Let’s say you only have five councillors you feel strongly about," said Johnston. "You can select those five, leave the other five spots blank, (and) that is a fully valid vote.”
But voters must be careful not to choose more candidates than indicated on the ballot, or their choices will be deemed invalid. For example, nine school trustees need to be elected. Voters can choose none, a few, or all nine, but if 10 candidates are marked, the vote won’t count.
“This is more like a 6/49 ticket,” said Canseco. “You have to be very careful about the way you do it, make sure that everything is going to count, and not put more names than you have to.”
The good news is that the computerized ballot tabulator will catch mistakes on the spot, and an election official can provide a new ballot once the erroneous one is destroyed.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Boeing's financial woes continue, while families of crash victims urge U.S. to prosecute the company
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.