More than 8,000 ballots cast as City of Kamloops reports significant jump in advance poll numbers

There were long lines of people waiting to vote for the 51 candidates – six for mayor, 29 for councillor and 16 for Area 1 of the Kamloops-Thompson School District – who are seeking local office, and every single incumbent is seeking re-election.

Former mayor Terry Lake told CFJC Today the long lines shows that Kamloops residents appear to be more engaged that in elections past.

“It’s difficult to gauge the level of general interest based just on social media because I fear people who are into social media may make it look like everyone is thinking about the same thing when in fact they may not be,” Lake said.

“But I do think the controversy over the last four years has raised the level of interest.”

People can still vote at one of 16 polling stations on general election day this Saturday.

Aberdeen Elementary School, 2191 Van Horne Drive
Arthur Hatton Elementary School, 315 Chestnut Avenue
Arthur Stevenson Elementary School, 2890 Bank Road
Beattie Elementary School, 492 McGill Road
Brocklehurst Secondary School, 985 Windbreak Street
Dallas Elementary School, 296 Harper Road
Dufferin Elementary School, 1880 Hillside Drive
Heritage House (Riverside Park), 100 Lorne Street
Juniper Ridge Elementary School, 2540 Qu’Appelle Boulevard
Lloyd George Elementary School, 830 Pine Street
NorKam Secondary School, 730 12th Street
RL Clemitson Elementary School, 5990 Todd Road
Ralph Bell Elementary School, 1764 Valleyview Drive
Rayleigh Elementary School, 306 Puett Ranch Road
South Sahali Elementary School, 1585 Summit Drive
Westmount Elementary School, 745 Walkem Road

“We’d like to remind voters that there may be lineups at some of the polls on Saturday and to please be patient and kind to the election workers,” Beday added. “They will be working hard to get people their ballots as quickly as possible.”

Beday said voter registration for the local election is done on site at polling stations. People will need to bring two pieces of identification, at least one of which needs to have a signature while one needs to show an address.

“Electors won’t receive a voter card for the general local election,” added Beday. “If you see a card arrive in the mail, it’s for the separate provincial election on October 24.”

Lake told CFJC Today he’s optimistic that the strong advance voter turnout will translate to a strong voter turnout on election day, better than the 29 per cent recorded four years ago.

“It’s our privilege to be able to exercise our franchise and vote for the people who we want to represent us,” Lake added. “So for people who are concerned about what’s going on in the community, concerned about how their money is being spent – they really only have one thing they absolutely have to do and that is to turnout and vote.”

CFJC Today will broadcast live election night coverage from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., as polls close on Saturday (Oct. 17).

For more information about voting requirements in Kamloops, visit this page. People looking for information on where and how to vote in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District or in other Kamloops-area municipalities can contact their local municipal office.

All of CFJC’s coverage of the upcoming municipal election can be found here.

by Elora McCormack & Victor Kaisar

More than 8,000 ballots cast as City of Kamloops reports significant jump in advance poll numbers

Our Community