[img]http://www.cbc.ca/gfx/images/news/photos/2011/05/01/li-620-leaders.jpg[/img]
[quote]After a 37-day federal election campaign, Canadian voters will get their chance to make their choice when they go to the polls on Monday.
Polling stations open in Newfoundland at 8:30 a.m. NT.
In Atlantic Canada, Quebec and Ontario, polls are set to open at 9:30 a.m. ET. Voters in those regions will have until 9:30 p.m. ET to cast their ballots.
In the west, polling stations open at 8:30 a.m. CT, 7:30 a.m. MT and 7 a.m. PT, and they will be open for 12 hours.
Canadians who are registered to vote will have received a voter information in the mail, and are registered to vote at the polling station indicated on the card.
Voters who are not already registered may register at their local polling station before casting a ballot. To register, voters will be required to prove their citizenship, age, identity and address.
[b]Results blackout[/b]
The first results will start being broadcast at 10 p.m. ET when the polls close in British Columbia. Strict rules prevent any instance of what Elections Canada calls "premature transmission of results" until the last polls have closed in every electoral district in the country.
Section 329 of the Elections Canada Act states that: "No person shall transmit the result or purported result of the vote in an electoral district to the public in another electoral district before the close of all of the polling stations in that other electoral district."
The agency has issued a warning to Facebook and Twitter users to use caution on election day when communicating and posting voting results, saying the act also applies to transmissions made over the internet.
[b]Record-setting advance polls[/b]
More than two million Canadians cast ballots in advance polls over the Easter long weekend, a 34 per cent increase from the 2008 federal election.
Preliminary figures from Elections Canada show 2,056,001 ballots were cast during the three days of advance polls, compared to 1,528,780 advance ballots cast three years ago.
Of the three advance polling dates, Elections Canada said two were the busiest advance polling days ever recorded.
[b]Polling stations warning[/b]
Elections Canada issued a warning to voters Sunday to ignore instructions from anyone but the agency itself about where they should vote.
The warning came after reports surfaced of voters being told to go to the wrong polling stations, some up to an hour away from their homes.
Elections Canada said it had received reports of voters being given false information in several ridings, most of them in Ontario.
[b]Leaders make final pitches[/b]
The federal party leaders were all on the campaign trail Sunday, making their final pitches to voters before election day.
Jack Layton's confidence continued to soar, as the New Democrat leader told the crowd gathered at a rally in Kingston, Ont., his party could defeat Stephen Harper's Conservatives. It was the first time in the election campaign Layton specifically said he could defeat Harper.
Harper, meanwhile, took his campaign across the country, touting his economic plan and blasting the NDP's platform, which he claimed would result in sky-high tax hikes. Harper also repeated his pitch to Liberal voters, saying the party will be nothing but a "backseat passenger" to an NDP government.
Ignatieff defended himself against Harper's appeal to Liberal supporters, accusing the Conservative leader of trying to destroy him and the party. Ignatieff underscored the difference between the Liberals and the NDP, saying the New Democrats have never formed a federal government.
Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe returned to Montreal on Sunday, appealing to Bloc supporters and their love for Quebec. He repeated the party's desire for the province to become its own country and took a shot at an NDP candidate who is running in a mostly Francophone area of Quebec but doesn't speak French.[/quote]
[url]http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canadavotes2011/story/2011/05/02/cv-electionday-polls.html[/url]
[quote]For the first time in this election campaign, New Democrat Leader Jack Layton says his party can defeat Stephen Harper's Conservatives.
Layton made the remarks while speaking to the overflow crowd gathered outside his Kingston, Ont., campaign office during a rally on Sunday.
"I want you to create lineups at the polls, my friends, because we can defeat Stephen Harper," Layton told the crowd.
The comment underscores the NDP leader's increasingly confident tone as Monday's vote approaches.
Harper was taking his campaign across the country as he pushes for momentum ahead of Monday's election.
Harper kicked off the day with a rally in Stratford, P.E.I., where he touted his economic plan and blasted the surging NDP, saying their platform would lead to "billions and billions of dollars in job-killing tax hikes."
By day's end, he will have made stops in three time zones as he tries to build enough support to secure his first majority.
[b]NDP touts 'winds of change'[/b]
The NDP leader, took his "winds of change" message to supporters in Montreal and Kingston.
Layton told a crowd of supporters in Montreal that the NDP was experiencing a “historic opportunity” that began in Quebec.
He urged supporters to make sure friends, family members and neighbours get to the polls on Monday.
"If we’re going to make these winds of change really happen, then we’ve got a lot of work to do," Layton said Sunday.
After the Montreal event, he headed to Kingston, where large crowds lined the street waiting for his arrival. He was slated to stop in Oshawa, Toronto and Scarborough later in the day.
[b]Harper targets Liberal voters[/b]
Harper also repeated his pitch for support from traditional Liberal voters, saying the best Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff can hope for is to be a "backseat passenger" in the NDP government.
Harper said the choice in the election is "increasingly stark" as voters prepare to head to the polls.
"You can have an NDP government or a Conservative government."
"Nothing is decided yet," Harper told the cheering crowd in P.E.I. "Every effort is going to matter, every riding here, everywhere else, is in play. Every vote counts."
After his stop in P.E.I., Harper was scheduled to fly to London, Ont., for another event, before ending up in Abbotsford, B.C.
Ignatieff was ending his campaign with a trek through the Greater Toronto Area, with stops in Ajax, Markham, Toronto, Thornhill and Maple.
He hit back against Harper's appeal to Liberal supporters, accusing the Conservative leader of trying to destroy him and the party, emphasized the difference between the Liberals and the NDP.
"We've worked together often on things where we have shared values, but hey — we know how to balance a budget, we know how to get a deficit under control, we know how to make promises and keep them," he said.
Ignatieff pointed to Liberal experience, saying Layton and the NDP have never formed a federal government.
"We've been there, we've done it," he said. "Every Liberal knows in their heart of hearts we're two different families, two different traditions."
Ignatieff told reporters he believes many Canadians are still undecided, and he urged voters to make up their own mind before casting their ballot.
He said again he believes a strong Liberal base will turn out and vote, saying the party has spent a "tremendous amount of time" working on a modern "get-out-the-vote operation."
[b]Duceppe rallies voters in home riding[/b]
Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe was back in his Montreal riding Sunday for an event at his campaign office. There were fewer than 60 people there to see the man who's led the party through six elections and sat in the House of Commons for 21 years.
Duceppe says he's counting on Bloc supporters, focusing his comments on the party's love for Quebec and desire for the province to become its own country. But he wouldn't talk about how this campaign has been different from the other ones he's led, as polls suggest NDP support has overtaken support for the Bloc.
Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe, right, speaks to the media as his wife Yolande Brunelle looks on during a campaign stop in Montreal on Sunday. Christinne Muschi/Reuters
"I'm always concerned about results as long as they're not known. Otherwise it's a kind of contempt towards the electorate," Duceppe said when asked about his own seat.
"I've had very different campaigns during all those years. I commented on them after they were over. Each time. So I won't change this time," he said.
Duceppe also took a shot at an NDP candidate who is running in a mostly Francophone area of Quebec but doesn't speak French.
"We've recognized the Quebec nation. That nation has a language. That language is French," Duceppe said. "That's not trivial... we have candidates who don't speak a word of French running in ridings in Quebec where it's not even one per cent Anglo."
Parti Québécois Leader Pauline Marois joined Duceppe on the campaign trail Saturday. The Bloc leader had another prominent supporter at one of his events Saturday — Muguette Paillé, a 53-year-old unemployed woman from Sainte-Angèle-de-Prémont in Quebec's Mauricie region, who generated buzz earlier in the campaign when she asked the leaders about job creation during the French-language debate.
Paillé, who still hasn't found a full-time job, said she will support the Bloc because she feels it's the best choice to defend Quebec's interests.
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May will be in B.C., where she is trying to win a seat in the Saanich-Gulf Islands riding.[/quote]
[url]http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canadavotes2011/story/2011/05/01/cv-election-campaign-final.html[/url]
Here we go! A long and in some ways historic campaign is drawing to a close. Will the Conservatives get their majority? Or will Layton hold them to a minority, or even upset and win his own minority? Will the Liberals manage to overcome the Orange Tide and maintain Opposition status? Will the Bloc lose in Quebec? So many questions will be answered tonight!
So Canadians, discuss your vote here and who you think will win in this "election Canadians didn't want".
And from the good folks at Wikimedia, here is your polling map.
[img]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/6c/2011FederalElectionPolls.png[/img]
I don't know much about Canadian politics but that NDP rise is looking good
Actually the polls open in two hours :C I'll vote NDP.
When I first heard of the "NDP" they sounded like some evil bastards though, I guess because it looks like NSDAP and because there are a lot of scary parties with abbreviated names here in the UK like UKIP and the BNP.
It's going to be fucking close. I think the conservatives will still win with a minority, but there are still hints of a majority. NDP is looking to be the official opposition.
The conservatives better not win a majority. They'll fucking destroy my country, make it a corporate whore.
What the NDP needs is actual turnout from young voters. If they can get that, they have a great shot at making huge gains.
My vote goes to Conservative / Green Party (whatever I feel like when I go to vote)
Edit:
I'm being spammed with dumbs, I have seen the error of my ways and will now vote liberal for life.
[QUOTE=Agent_Wesker;29568273]Conservative / Green Party[/QUOTE]
Haha what? They are like polar opposites
Voting NDP today.
Awww yeahhhhh
NDP just keeps on rolling.
Got my fingers crossed. God, I hope they win.
Flying orange in support of these bros on election day.
[QUOTE=Megafanx13;29569036]NDP just keeps on rolling.[/QUOTE]
NDP I mean.
[QUOTE=archangel125;29569043]NDP I mean.[/QUOTE]
Damn right.
Elect person with good ideas but doesn't like foreigners that come to Canada to leech off social security.
BBC: Canada elects massive racist that hates black people.
Huge shit storm on Facepunch spanning over 3 threads.
I called it.
[QUOTE=nikomo;29569729]Elect person with good ideas but doesn't like foreigners that come to Canada to leech off social security.
BBC: Canada elects massive racist that hates black people.
Huge shit storm on Facepunch spanning over 3 threads.
I called it.[/QUOTE]
Who, Harper?
[QUOTE=nikomo;29569729]Elect person with good ideas but doesn't like foreigners that come to Canada to leech off social security.
BBC: Canada elects massive racist that hates black people.
Huge shit storm on Facepunch spanning over 3 threads.
I called it.[/QUOTE]
The only news services with headlines nearly that stupid are the Daily Mail, and Fox News.
lets hope for NDP and the marijuana decriminalization that comes with them
[QUOTE=Whats This?v4;29570189]lets hope for NDP and the marijuana decriminalization that comes with them[/QUOTE]
Mhmm.
Come on NDP!
...
I don't even live in Canada!
hung parliament
ok there i said it.
I'm currently in Senegal and will be on a plane to France while the results are announced. Plus I won't be able to vote. I'm pissed.
[QUOTE=jordguitar;29570272]hung parliament
ok there i said it.[/QUOTE]
An NDP-led coalition government with the Liberals is better than a Conservative minority government any day.
Vote Mustache Party
[editline]2nd May 2011[/editline]
I mean NDP
woo going to go vote
woo!
[QUOTE=Lambeth;29570859]Vote Mustache Party
[editline]2nd May 2011[/editline]
I mean NDP[/QUOTE]
I hear Layton's mustache is running as another candidate.
I can't wait to see how low voter turnout is going to be this year.
Go Green/NDP!
[QUOTE=Sumap;29571660]I can't wait to see how low voter turnout is going to be this year.[/QUOTE]
If we base the voting turnout on the turnout in the advance polling, turnout should actually go up.
I can't find my voting card. I packed it away when I moved and forgot which box it went in.
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