THUNDER BAY — A minor issue affecting many other Ontario municipalities was encountered Monday as Thunder Bay residents visited polling stations to cast their ballots in the municipal election.
According to City Clerk Krista Power, the returning officer for the election, "There are no problems, however we were experiencing some slower than normal service on our voter's list portal. The vendor is aware and they are working to speed up the system. Nothing is down."
Power said up to half the municipalities in Ontario using the same system were experiencing the same issue.
"All polling stations use the same portal. Folks are voting and we are checking them off the voter's list. It's just slower than it is normally."
In a statement at 1 p.m. Monday, the city clerk noted "We are already noticing that it is speeding up."
Voters have until 8 p.m. to vote online or at their designated polling station.
There are almost 83,000 eligible voters for this election.
The turnout in the 2018 election was 51 per cent, which was better than most other Ontario cities.
The city clerk has provided multiple opportunities for voters to participate in the election in an effort to raise that percentage even higher.
TBnewswatch will provide complete results Monday evening.
