THUNDER BAY – It’s almost time for voters to head to the polls after a four-week provincial election campaign.
Ballots will be cast in the 42nd Ontario general election on Thursday as voters elect the next provincial government. Polls will be open from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m.
Thunder Bay-Superior North returning officer Julio Gomes said the quickest way for voters to cast their ballots is to bring the voter information card received in the mail, though it is not required.
“If you didn’t get the card or can’t find it you can still vote,” Gomes said. “Bring a piece of information that has your name and address on it, we will find you on the list of electors. If you’re not on the list of electors, you can quickly fill out a form and be given a ballot to vote.”
The Thunder Bay-Superior North riding is among the most spacious in the province at 92,000 square kilometres. The riding has 54,000 eligible voters in this election, with more than 4,800 of them having already voted in advance polls earlier in the campaign.
Gomes said there will be 54 locations, along with seven in multi-residential buildings and a dozen of mobile polls in nursing homes and hospitals.
“Make sure you’re in the right electoral district and make sure you know where your voting location is. On voting day, you can only vote at the designated location,” Gomes said.
Larger polling stations will have an electronic database with the voter roll and ballots will be fed into a tabulator machine. Smaller stations, particularly ones throughout the region, will still have paper copies for the list of eligible voters and the ballots will be placed into ballot boxes.
Gomes said the goal is to have people in and out of polling stations in a matter of minutes.
“What we’re trying to do is organize the voting locations so people can come and vote as easily as we can make it,” Gomes said. “Our only concern is to have locations in convenient locations for people so they can come in, vote as quickly as possible with a minimum of aggravation and disruption.”
Voters looking to cast their ballots early can do so on Wednesday until 6 p.m. at their riding’s returning office. The Thunder Bay-Superior North returning office is located in County Fair Mall. The Thunder Bay-Atikokan returning office is located in the former Hyde Park Public School on Walsh Street.
For more information visit Elections Ontario.
