Record number of Manitobans voted in advance polls By: Kevin Rollason and Alex Lambert Posted: 7:05 PM CDT Friday, Apr. 25, 2025 Last Modified: 11:29 AM CDT Saturday, Apr. 26, 2025 Updates

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Although Monday is election day across Canada, a record number of Manitobans have already cast ballots.

A total of 229,379 people voted across the province over the four-day Easter long weekend — a jump of 22 per cent from the 187,960 who voted at advance polls in the last federal election in 2021.

According to statistics from Elections Canada, voters in Winnipeg West were the most eager to vote early; 23,889, or 32.7 per cent, of the people eligible to vote in the riding did so last weekend.

The riding, formerly known as Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia—Headingley, is expected to be a two-way race between two-term Conservative incumbent MP Marty Morantz and Liberal candidate Dr. Doug Eyolfson, who was the MP from 2015 to 2019.

“People are responding to the message of our campaign,” Morantz said while taking a quick break from campaigning Friday.

“People are responding to our common-sense Conservative message which is we want to reduce taxes, we want to have homes built in this country to bring back housing affordability in this country, we want some fiscal sanity as to how Ottawa spends their tax dollars, and they are upset about our catch-and-release criminal justice system that has brought crime in their neighbourhood.

“All of these things, we are talking about at the doors, I think people are responding to. I think that’s reflected in the higher turnout in the advance polls.”

As for Eyolfson, who had just rolled out of bed after working an overnight shift treating patients at the Grace Hospital emergency room — he is working another one overnight into election day — he said the high advance voting numbers “reflects the amount of engagement we’ve received at the door.

“They are following the issues. They really care about this election,” he said.

Eyolfson said people are telling him they are concerned with what U.S. President Donald Trump is saying about Canada, but they are also worried about Tory leader Pierre Poilievre’s comments that he would use the notwithstanding clause to override the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Poilievre has said on the campaign trail he wants to impose consecutive life sentences on offenders who commit multiple murders — something the Supreme Court has already ruled would violate their Charter rights.

”He is willing to override the (Charter of Rights and Freedoms) for laws they believe are best,” he said. “The Charter is to protect everyone and people are concerned a prime minister would be willing to override that.”

Health-care worker Dominique Rhéaume voted early for the NDP candidate in Winnipeg West, despite concerns from her family that it could split the vote in the riding.

“It’s a really tough decision, actually,” she said. “As a personal choice, I’d just rather vote for who I really do follow.”

University of Manitoba political studies professor Christopher Adams said the advance polls were busy partly because it was a holiday weekend. But he said there is more interest this time.

The advance numbers show the level of engagement was higher in more affluent areas of the city, he said, noting Winnipeg Centre, with 11,170 votes (17.5 per cent of eligible voters), had the second-lowest advance turnout in the province. Churchill-Keewatinook Aski, one of the largest ridings in Canada, had the lowest turnout, with 4,168 or 8.7 per cent.

“How do you get out to vote if you’re a single parent and your kid is sick?” he said. “Poverty is a major factor in the turnouts.”

Adams said the high advance turnout also means something else.

“This election, a lot of people have made up their minds much earlier in the election than the last one,” he said.

Across the country, 7.28 million Canadians voted in the advance poll, up from 5.85 million in 2021.

Winnipeg West’s results were followed closely by 30.7 per cent (21,740 votes) in Winnipeg South Centre, where Liberal incumbent Ben Carr is battling Conservative candidate Royden Brousseau, and 29.6 per cent in Winnipeg South, where Liberal incumbent — and environment and climate change minister — Terry Duguid faces former provincial Tory MP and cabinet minister Janice Morley-Lecomte.

Winnipeg South resident Amie Cowan, 45, said she often votes at advance polls.

Cowan said community safety was one of the most important things for her this time.

“This area is becoming a lot more unsafe than it has been in past years,” she said.

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Duguid, who is also co-chair of the Liberal national campaign, said seeing almost 30 per cent of his riding’s electorate show up to vote already “is staggering.

“It was just incredible. I’m already pleased — this is good for democracy. It points out that this is an important and consequential election for the country. You hear this at the door that people know this may be the most important election of their lifetime.”

In Kildonan — St. Paul, Tory incumbent Raquel Dancho is in a tight battle with Liberal Thomas Naaykens; 21,333 people, or 27.7 per cent, cast their votes last weekend.

“If I can do it early, I’ll do it early,” said 42-year-old marketing and business developer Leah Bock.

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca

Kevin Rollason
Reporter

Kevin Rollason was a general assignment reporter at the Free Press.