Manitobans head to polls

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This article was published 28/04/2025 (184 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba’s federal election polls are open after a month-long campaign and a record number of early votes.

The polls opened at 8:30 a.m. and will remain open until 8:30 p.m. Monday as voters decide which party will form Canada’s next government.

The Conservatives held seven seats in Manitoba before Parliament was dissolved, while the Liberals had four, and the New Democratic Party had three.

Though some analysts have predicted the election will have a high turnout after large numbers of early votes, Elections Canada regional media adviser Marie-France Kenny said it’s still too early to say.

“There’s really no way to tell — advanced polls were higher. One can assume that they’ll be higher today, but one can also assume that everybody came out and voted during advanced polls and nobody else is going to come and vote today. So, it’s hard to tell. We don’t have a crystal ball,” Kenny said.

“But obviously, we want people to come and vote — exercise their right.”

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

At the polling station at the Centre Culturel Franco-Manitobain on Provencher Boulevard, those who went to cast their ballots Monday morning reported no significant waits. No lines could be seen at the door.

Ryann Teillet, 29, was among the voters.

“There was no line at all. No wait,” she said, adding there was a bit of a lineup at her polling station in the last federal election.

She said she thinks this election’s stakes are higher than in prior votes.

“It definitely seems more serious, with the world, (U.S. President Donald) Trump, everything,” Telleit said.

“You want to make sure you’re voting in the right person. It’s definitely important to vote, always, but this one feels more important.”

Norbert and Pierrette Bender, who are both in their 70s, had a similar assessment of the stakes.

“My biggest concern is what’s happening down south and how it affects us, with the tariffs and all that,” Norbert said. “Talking about the 51st state, things we don’t like.”

Norbert said though he was disappointed with the Liberal government under then-prime minister Justin Trudeau, he hopes new PM Mark Carney will form government and bring in change.

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“I think the Liberals are the better choice to deal with the U.S.A,” Pierrette added.

People who need to find their polling station can check their voter information card, which was mailed out earlier in the election, or search for it on Election Canada’s website.

Voters need current government-issued photo ID to cast their ballot, or two other pieces of ID that include their name. One of those pieces must have the voter’s address.

Elections Canada’s Kenny advised that anyone who is in line at their polling station as of 8:30 p.m. Monday will be allowed in to vote.

erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca

Erik Pindera
Reporter

Erik Pindera is a reporter for the Free Press, mostly focusing on crime and justice. The born-and-bred Winnipegger attended Red River College Polytechnic, wrote for the community newspaper in Kenora, Ont. and reported on television and radio in Winnipeg before joining the Free Press in 2020.  Read more about Erik.

Every piece of reporting Erik produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.