Voters across Winnipeg encounter long lineups at advance polling stations

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This article was published 09/10/2015 (3641 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Voters across the city endured long line-ups and waits of over an hour to cast their ballot in advance polls.

At multiple polling stations, eager voters reported walking into unorganized polling stations and confusion like they have never seen before in previous elections.

At Harrow United Church, an advance polling station for Winnipeg South Centre residents, people exited describing a scene of chaos as over 70 people clamored to cast their ballot at one sole voting table setup.

“I have never run into this before,” said Donna Corthey, who always votes in advance polls and waited for over an hour on Friday.

“It is also not set up very well, it is not a great place for anyone with a disability… the process here seems to be not well thought out, I hope it is because more people were voting.”

Kathy Hicks and Diane Church arrived to vote at the church, and turned around after waiting for 20 minutes and then being told it would be a further hour wait.

“They (Elections Canada officers) told us that they were not prepared for this many people all at once,” she said, noting part of the wait was because they had to move a polling station to a larger room.

Advance polling stations opened at 12 p.m. on Friday and will continue until Monday, closing every night at 8 p.m.

A spokeswoman with Elections Canada said people need to be patient.

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

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“They have all weekend to vote and we understand that there may be some lineups and we apologize and thank them for their patience,” Marie-France Kenny said Friday.

Over in Saint Boniface-Saint Vital riding, voters reported waits of over an hour at the Winakwa Community Club.

Ben Brisebois said a restless crowd of about 55, became increasingly agitated as many were seniors and they had to stand for a long time. The issue was that there was only one voting table at the station, he said.

“There was one table that people could actually vote at, plus the information and registration table and they weren’t busy at all,” he said. “People in line were saying they had voted in advanced polls before and they had never seen this.”

kristin.annable@freepress.mb.ca