The City of Vancouver’s turnout for the first three days of advance voting in the 2026 civic election has now surpassed the total from all five advance voting days in the 2022 civic election, with one advance voting day opportunity still remaining.
The municipal government’s preliminary figures show 27,748 people voted on Saturday, Oct. 10, setting a new all-time, single-day advance voting record for the third consecutive time.
Yesterday’s turnout exceeded the previous records of 25,142 on Wednesday, Oct. 7, and 21,824 on Saturday, Oct. 3.
That was also approximately double the 13,856 people who participated on the third advance voting day in 2022.
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The count over the three advance voting days add up to a combined total of 74,714 voters. That is 9,751 more people — or about 15 per cent higher — than the 64,963 recorded across all five advance voting days in the 2022 civic election.
Furthermore, the three-day advance voting turnout figure represents about 44 per cent of the 171,494 ballots cast in the entire 2022 civic election across mail-in voting, advance voting, and general voting day.
Despite the increased participation, the City said voters continued to report being able to get through voting places quickly.
The final advance voting day is Tuesday, Oct. 13, with polls open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. across 59 locations. General voting day — the final opportunity to vote in the 2026 civic election — follows on Saturday, Oct. 17, during the same hours across 85 locations.
The drastic turnout increase to date is likely due in part to the City’s significant expansion of advance voting opportunities. While the number of advance voting days decreased from five days in the 2022 civic election to four days in the 2026 civic election, the number of voting locations available each advance voting day has nearly tripled from 22 to 59 locations. Voters can conveniently cast their ballot at any location during advance voting and on general voting day.
It remains to be seen whether the snap provincial election has heightened public awareness of both elections and whether the surge in early voting will translate into higher overall civic turnout. As well, there is a possibility that expanded advance voting opportunities may simply be encouraging many people who would normally vote on general voting day to cast their ballots earlier.
In Vancouver’s civic election, voters will choose a mayor, city councillors, Vancouver Park Board commissioners, and Vancouver School Board trustees, and complete two separate plebiscites.
They will also vote on capital plan plebiscite borrowing questions to fund new and upgraded facilities and infrastructure. A separate non-binding public safety plebiscite will seek their views on public hard-drug use and a proposed secure medical treatment facility for people with mental health and addiction issues.
To support the greatly expanded voting opportunities, particularly for advance voting, the City’s elections budget has more than doubled from $4.4 million for the 2022 civic election to $9.4 million for the 2026 civic election. This expanded budget to improve voting operations also follows the issue of long queues during the April 2025 by-election.
The high advance voting turnout on the first day also follows record demand for mail-in ballots. On Oct. 1, the City reported more than 18,000 requests for ballot packages, exceeding the entire 2022 civic election’s total of 10,523 by more than 70 per cent.
The final deadlines for mail-in ballots are now fast approaching; voters can request a package for pickup at the Election Office until noon on Tuesday, Oct. 13, with the pickup deadline set for noon on Friday, Oct. 16, and completed mail ballots must reach the City by 8 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 17 to be counted. A postmark before the deadline is not enough. Mail-in ballot packages can be returned by mail or through designated drop boxes.
During the separate provincial general election, voters will choose the MLA for their riding, which will help determine which provincial political party forms provincial government. The general voting day for the provincial election is Saturday, Oct. 17, with advance voting taking place over a six-day period between Friday, Oct. 16 and Wednesday, Oct. 21.
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