It’s election day in Nova Scotia, and the polls are now open in the 41st general election.
The race has appeared to have tightened in the last week with a Liberal majority win now uncertain.
A poll on August 10th showed about one-third of voters are undecided, which means there is still room for the contest to swing.
Tory Leader Tim Houston says it’s going to be close, while Liberal Leader Iain Rankin is still predicting a majority.
The polls are open on Tuesday for 12-hours, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. The votes will start to be tallied up right after.
It’s unclear how long the count might take due to record numbers of write-in ballots and early voting.
The province’s Chief Electoral Officer Richard Temporale has said he may need to stop the count at midnight, even without a clear winner.
If that happens it will pick back up at 10 a.m. on Wednesday.
Elections Nova Scotia has released its final stats for early voting for the 55 electoral districts. The data shows voting is up for this election when compared to the one in 2017.
A total of 176,793 early votes have been cast in this election campaign, which is an increase of about 60,000 votes when compared to four years ago.
The total includes the number of write-in ballot applications process, plus early votes cast at the returning office continuous polls, community polls, and advance polls before election day.
Here is a full list of the leaders’ schedules for Tuesday, August 17:
NDP Leader Gary Burrill’s Schedule:
- Burrill will visit Halifax Armdale, Sackville-Cobequid, Preston, Eastern Passage, Cole Harbour, Fairview-Clayton Park, and Halifax Citadel-Sable Island.
PC Leader Tim Houston’s Schedule:
- Voting with his family
- Time: 10: 45 a.m.
- Location: Little Harbour Community Centre, Little Harbour Road
- Visiting polling stations in Pictou East
- Time: 11: 30 a.m.
- Leader’s speech
- Time: TBD
- Location: Pictou Wellness Centre, 2-2756 Westville, Rd., Pictou County
Liberal Leader Iain’s Rankin Schedule:
- Wave at Windsor Street Exchange
- Time: 8 a.m.
- Location: Halifax-Windsor Street Exchange
- Wave at Dartmouth Sportsplex
- Time: 8:30 a.m.
- Location: Dartmouth-Dartmouth Sportsplex
- Wave at Burnside
- Time: 4 p.m.
- Location: Dartmouth-Burnside
**With files from Jack Morse.
