{"id":228330,"date":"2025-10-21T02:43:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T02:43:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/228330\/"},"modified":"2025-10-21T02:43:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-21T02:43:10","slug":"long-lines-frustrate-voters-at-municipal-election-polling-stations-across-alberta","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/228330\/","title":{"rendered":"Long lines frustrate voters at municipal election polling stations across Alberta"},"content":{"rendered":"

Its election day in municipalities across Alberta, but some voters in the province\u2019s two biggest cities tell Global News they had to wait upwards of two hours to cast their ballot.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

In Edmonton on Monday night, the city said more standby workers were deployed to deal with the backlog but acknowledged voting stations have experienced delays due to staff shortages.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe did have some election workers who were hired, trained and assigned to voting stations, but unfortunately, their circumstances changed and they were not able to join us today,\u201d the city said just before 7:30 p.m. as residents reported waiting several hours in line.<\/p>\n

Voting stations are now closed. If you\u2019re in line, you can still vote! <\/p>\n

Once voters leave a station, counting will begin. <\/p>\n

Some results will be available tonight, we expect to continue counting tomorrow, Oct. 21. <\/p>\n

To view results, visit https:\/\/t.co\/tRKRnG41rN<\/a>. pic.twitter.com\/gG7vGQ17hS<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Edmonton Elections (@EdmElections) October 21, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n

In some cases the lineups were so long, people walked away without even voting in Edmonton and Calgary.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m surprised by the length of the lineup,\u201d said Michael Cooper as he waited for his turn to vote in Calgary in the early evening.<\/p>\n

Chris Gerien, who voted at Colonel Walker School in Inglewood, said there weren\u2019t enough Elections Calgary workers inside the school to deal with the long lineups.<\/p>\n

\u201cI waited two hours in line,\u201d said Gerien \u201cThey needed to fill out a form for every single voter and it\u2019s all duplicate information for your address, postal code name and age which is already on the voter list.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are similar stories of frustration from voters in every corner of Calgary.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\"Get<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tGet daily National news<\/p>\n

Get the day’s top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.<\/p>\n

At St. Alphonsus School in the northeast part of the city, the lineup to vote was wrapped around the outside of the building, prompting some people to turn away without voting.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tSome voters in both Calgary and Edmonton told Global News, the lineups at some polls were so long, the decided not to vote.\t\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tGlobal News\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

In an emailed update on Monday afternoon, Elections Calgary said 46 per cent of polling stations were reporting wait times of 10 minutes or less.<\/p>\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n

It blamed the long delays on new provincial legislation (Bill 20) that requires election workers to check a new \u201cpermanent electors register\u201d to confirm a person\u2019s eligibility to vote.<\/p>\n

Officials in Edmonton said the same thing.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll electors are legislatively required to complete a Statement of Eligibility form (Form 13) at the voting station. This form is a declaration by an elector that they meet the required legislated criteria to receive and cast ballots,\u201d Elections Edmonton said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe ask Edmontonians to plan ahead and please have patience.\u201d<\/p>\n

If voters aren\u2019t on the register, they can still vote but must produce one piece of government-issued ID, in addition to proof of their current address such as a lease agreement or bank statement.<\/p>\n

Voters who aren\u2019t on the register, but want vote in the school board election, public or separate, must also complete a statement confirming they are eligible to vote.<\/p>\n

Those casting ballots say confirming voters are on the register or completing the necessary paperwork takes three to five minutes per voter.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Click<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t1:54
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNew rules for municipal political parties, donations in Alberta under Bill 20\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

The problem has been exacerbated by the Canada Post strike because in past elections, registered voters would\u2019ve received a voter information card in the mail.<\/p>\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n

The changes this year are also causing long lineups at polls in Edmonton, with some voters on Monday evening saying they waited up to two hours to cast a ballot.<\/p>\n

\u201cLong, long lineup ahead of us and it looked like it was taking five minutes-ish per person so we did some math and figured out we\u2019d have to come back later,\u201d said voter Neil Fitzpatrick.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tAt this poll in the Edmonton neighbourhood of Delton, some voters told Global News they had been in line for 30 minutes and were still no closer to the front.\t\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tGlobal News\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s a problem when people have to wait that long it\u2019s certainly going to perhaps slant the results (because) some people might end up walking away,\u201d said voter Greg Plouffe.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s a concern shared by at least one Edmonton mayoral candidate.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen people who are on a busy schedule \u2014 if they are seeing the lines, it may deter them to vote,\u201d said Rahim Jaffer.<\/p>\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n

\u201cWe hope that won\u2019t happen but I\u2019m afraid it could be an outcome.\u201d<\/p>\n

Global News has reached out to the Alberta government department of Municipal Affairs for a response to the voters concerns about the long lineups, but as of publishing had not received a response.<\/p>\n

There are also expected to be long delays in determining the outcome of many of the races this year because the new provincial legislation also prevents the use of electronic tabulators and instead requires all the ballots to be counted by hand.<\/p>\n

That means it could be several days before voters know who the winners are.<\/p>\n

\n\t\t&copy 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.\t<\/p>\n