One thing that remains unknown ahead of election day is how the youth will vote.
Political scientist Christopher Adams said older voters tend to have a higher turnout compared to younger voters, partly because young people don’t usually have landlines.
"Younger people are more on cellphones and they are harder to reach by both the candidates to get out the vote as well as by the people doing to the polling, so they are harder to reach on election day,” said Adams.
Although many youth aren't homeowners or don’t pay property taxes, Adams said don't count out young people when it comes to having an influence.
He said there are municipal issues youth care about such as public transit, the environment and access to wifi in public spaces.
Adams said young people can have a significant impact on the outcome of elections and cited examples such as Prime Minster Justin Trudeau and Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi.
The University of Manitoba Students’ Union (UMSU) has been highlighting issues online, such as the completion of bus rapid transit, bus routes and a composting strategy, to engage students and encourage them to vote in the civic election.
"We want to see the mayoral candidates and of course also the city council take a much bigger leadership on composting. Our city lags far behind other cities," said UMSU president Jakob Sanderson.
He said the union is trying to combat the idea that youth don't vote with the slogan 'Students Are Voting'.
STUDENTS HOLD MOCK ELECTION
Students at George Waters Middle School in St. James held a mock election one day ahead of election day.
Leading up to the event, students learned about the candidates and debated issues.
A Grade 8 student who spoke with CTV News say if people are old enough to vote, they should exercise their right to cast a ballot.
The student said they enjoyed learning about the electoral process and look forward to voting when they’re old enough.
