The outcome of the Edmonton mayoral race remains uncertain until at least Tuesday morning, with vote counting halted at 1 a.m. Election officials disclosed that counting would recommence at 9 a.m. on Tuesday. Amid delays, all polling stations closed over two hours later than scheduled, resulting in lengthy queues at various locations in central and northern Alberta, with wait times exceeding an hour.
Notably, Edmonton Elections indicated an unofficial turnout of 30.27%, with 205,758 out of 679,830 eligible voters participating, marking the lowest turnout since 2007. In the current election, a record 236,000 voters cast their ballots in Edmonton. As of the early hours, preliminary results showed Andrew Knack leading the mayoral race with 20,540 votes, followed by Tim Cartmell with 15,645 votes, among the 13 mayoral candidates.
Furthermore, all Edmonton wards had reported early results by that time. Elections Calgary’s data showed over 327,000 unofficially counted votes in the city’s mayoral race, covering 349 of 380 polls. Additionally, various Alberta local governments, encompassing municipalities, towns, villages, municipal districts, and counties, were conducting council elections, along with 61 ongoing school board elections.
In Edmonton, where Mayor Amarjeet Sohi opted not to seek reelection, voters are selecting a new mayor from a pool of 13 candidates. The city also has 81 candidates vying for 12 city council seats across its municipal wards. Reports of long wait times in Edmonton prompted explanations from election authorities and Municipal Affairs Minister Dan Williams regarding the impact of new voting procedures this year.
Individuals shared their experiences of delays, with some waiting for up to an hour. Despite challenges, young citizens like Nicolas Nguyen emphasized the importance of being engaged in the democratic process. Notably, this year’s municipal elections in Alberta involved manual vote counting as mandated by recent government changes.
The preliminary vote count is expected to conclude by Tuesday, with official results required by Friday afternoon. The mayoral race results will be the first to be made public, followed by councillor and school trustee outcomes. The City of Edmonton’s website offers detailed information for voters on the division of powers among different levels of government.
