Manitoba voters find comfort and convenience in mail-in ballots amid pandemic
Thousands of Manitobans opted to vote by mail during this year's federal election due to COVID-19 concerns, and some don't plan on returning to the polls in person again – even after the pandemic.
Winnipeg resident Aimee Horbul and her mother voted by mail for the first time this year.
"Even though I am vaccinated, I felt it was unnecessary if I had this option, to go into a public place where there may be potentially a lot of people," Horbul said.
"It was convenient, it was easy."
Bre Kelly has always cast her vote in person, but this year she decided to vote by mail.
"Basically as soon as it became available to me on the Elections Canada website to register for voting by mail, I registered," she said.
"It was probably like three days later I got my card in the mail and I sent it off before the end of August."
Bre Kelly (pictured) has always cast her vote in person, but this year she decided to vote by mail. (Source: CTV News Winnipeg)
Kelly said the ability to vote by mail is also a good option for people outside of major cities.
"Mostly because it is a bit of an accessibility thing," she said. "I've never had to live in a rural neighbourhood or area myself, but I know that voting by mail may be more convenient for people who don't have immediate access to polling stations."
CANADA SEES SPIKE IN REGISTERED MAIL-IN VOTING KITS THIS YEAR
Elections Canada says more than 1.2 million people registered to vote by mail this year – a significant jump from the approximately 55,000 voting kits sent out to Canadians during the 2019 election.
"It is quite a leap," said Marie-France Kenny, the regional media advisor for Elections Canada. "We believe the pandemic because of the fourth wave is one of the factors. There's several factors – people travelling, not wanting to go to a poll station, not wanting to wear a mask."
More than 35,500 voting kits were sent to Manitoba voters – this includes those voting by mail inside their riding, those voting by mail from outside their riding, and those voting from outside of Canada.
Graphic: CTV News Winnipeg / Background photo source: The Canadian Press/Jeff McIntosh
Winnipeg South Centre saw the highest uptake with mail-in voting, with more than 5,500 kits issued in the riding.
While the deadline to apply to vote by mail has passed, Kenny said it is important that those who applied to vote by mail send their ballot in by Election Day. They can send the ballot by mail, or drop it off at their local Elections Canada office, or return it to their assigned polling station.
SOME VOTERS PLAN TO KEEP VOTING BY MAIL BEYOND THE PANDEMIC
Kenny said it is hard to say whether this spike in mail-in ballots will continue beyond the pandemic.
"We don't know what the future holds as far as pandemics, as far as health issues or safety issues," Kenny said. "So it's hard to say at this point in whether the uptake will be the same in future elections."
As for Kelly and Horbul, they both plan on using the mail-in ballot options in future elections.
"If it is going to be an option for me, I will definitely take it. It is just one less errand I want to call it. One less errand for me to worry about," Kelly said.
"I mean there is some excitement of heading to the polls on Election Day that I might miss, but I think it may be a small sacrifice that I may want to make," Horbul said.
Those who didn't vote at the advanced polls or by mail will have to cast their vote in-person on Election Day on Sept. 20.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
Humanist group threatening to sue Vancouver over council prayers
The B.C. Humanist Association has threatened legal action against the City of Vancouver for allowing prayers at council, following a similar warning issued earlier this month to a smaller community on Vancouver Island.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.