SHARE ON: |
| |
| |
 |
 |
|
|
Across Saskatchewan, the polls are closed but the fate of many hopeful MLA’s remains undecided.
Some of the provinces tightest electoral races will be decided by mail in votes, but a final count is not expected before Nov. 7.
According to Elections Saskatchewan, by the end of Election Day, 385,461 ballots from advance voting polls, election day polls and personal care facility polls had been counted.
That accounts for roughly 47 per cent of the 841,807 eligible voters in the province, but that is just the first preliminary count of three total counts.
More-than 61,000 voters were mailed vote by mail (VBM) packages before the Oct. 15 deadline, of those, 40,214 had been returned and accepted when polls closed on Oct. 26 at 8 p.m.
Those returned VBM ballots will be counted in the Second Preliminary Count, which starts two days after the election, on Oct. 28.
Elections Saskatchewan will set up 26 counting stations in multiple counting halls at the Delta hotel. Counting will run from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. each day until all VBM ballots, received by Oct. 26, have been counted.
Chief Electoral Officer, Michael Boda anticipates the process could take up to three days.
There are still more than 20,000 VBM ballots which have not been returned. VBM ballots have to be in the mail before Oct. 26 at 8 p.m. but Elections Saskatchewan will accept VBM ballots until Nov. 5 at noon.
The remaining VBM ballots, along with special ballots, absentee ballots and extraordinary voting ballots as part of the Final Count on Nov. 7.
“We know the importance of completing the count for all 61 constituencies, but we are very much aware of the races where the margin of votes currently is less than the total number of vote by mail ballots still to count,” Boda said. “These races will be our focus starting on Wednesday as we know the candidates in these constituencies are anxiously awaiting the final results.”
WHAT IT MEANS IN CLOSE RACES
In Regina, 10 of 12 constituencies have potential VBM ballot totals larger than the vote margin separating the two leading candidates.
In Regina University, after the first preliminary count, incumbent Saskatchewan Party candidate Tina Beaudry-Mellor leads two-time NDP challenger Aleana Young by just 178 votes.
There were 1,814 VBM ballots sent out in Regina University. As of Oct. 26 at 8 p.m., 1,371 have been returned and accepted. They will be tallied as part of the second preliminary count starting Oct. 28. That leaves 443 VBM ballots which could be received up until Nov. 5 at noon, to be included in the final count. In 2016, Beaudry-Mellor beat Young by 417 votes.
There were 2,674 VBM ballots requested in the Regina Pasqua constituency. Saskatchewan Party incumbent Muhammad Fiaz leads the NDP’s Bhajan Brar by 576 after the first count.
A total of 1,872 VBM ballots will be counted for Regina Pasqua in the second count, but 802 VBM ballots in the constituency have yet to be returned. Fiaz won the seat by 298 votes in 2016.
The wait is hard for candidates who have already fought a long, pandemic campaign.
NDP Sally Housser NDP Campaign Press Secretary says her party made a concerted effort to encourage mail in voting early.
“The sense that, you can’t control it either. It’s not like you can get out there and knock on more doors or change it. It’s in the mail,” Housser said. “People right now are remaining hopeful and spending the time today thanking their volunteers and their campaign team and waiting for the future.”
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
10 am |
| 15 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: SSE 15 KM/H
GUSTING TO 14 KM/H |
|
|
|
11 am |
| 15 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: S 11 KM/H
GUSTING TO 11 KM/H |
|
|
|
12 pm |
| 16 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: W 2 KM/H
GUSTING TO 4 KM/H |
|
|
|
1 pm |
| 18 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: SW 8 KM/H
GUSTING TO 13 KM/H |
|
|
|
2 pm |
| 19 ℃ |
| BROKEN CLOUDS |
WIND: SW 9 KM/H
GUSTING TO 14 KM/H |
|
|
|
3 pm |
| 21 ℃ |
| BROKEN CLOUDS |
WIND: SW 11 KM/H
GUSTING TO 16 KM/H |
|
|
 |
4 pm |
| 21 ℃ |
| SCATTERED CLOUDS |
WIND: SW 10 KM/H
GUSTING TO 17 KM/H |
|
|
|
5 pm |
| 21 ℃ |
| BROKEN CLOUDS |
WIND: SW 7 KM/H
GUSTING TO 13 KM/H |
|
|
|
|
TODAY |
HIGH OF 21 ℃
LOW OF 11 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
|
|
|
FRIDAY |
HIGH OF 17 ℃
LOW OF 9 ℃ |
| SCATTERED CLOUDS |
|
|
 |
SATURDAY |
HIGH OF 14 ℃
LOW OF 5 ℃ |
| CLEAR SKY |
|
|
|
SUNDAY |
HIGH OF 16 ℃
LOW OF 3 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
|
|
|
MONDAY |
HIGH OF 19 ℃
LOW OF 7 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
|
|
 |
TUESDAY |
HIGH OF 10 ℃
LOW OF 4 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
|
|
|
WEDNESDAY |
HIGH OF 14 ℃
LOW OF 5 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
|
|
|
THURSDAY |
HIGH OF 21 ℃
LOW OF 7 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
THE HIM
LOOK AT US NOW
10:29 AM |
|
 |
THE WEEKND
I FEEL IT COMING
10:25 AM |
|
 |
RYAN RIBACK
PAPERCUTS
10:22 AM |
|
 |
MARTEN HORGER
ILL BEHAVIOR
10:19 AM |
|
 |
SELENA GOMEZ
LOST IN LOVE
10:17 AM |
|
 |
JEFFREY SUTORIUS
SO MUCH MORE
10:11 AM |
|
 |
JAKE TARRY
ALWAYS ON MY MIND
10:08 AM |
|
 |
ANTON POWERS
DO ME RIGHT
10:04 AM |
|
 |
MEGHAN TRAINOR
LET YOU BE RIGHT
10:02 AM |
|
 |
THE CHAINSMOKERS
THE REAPER
09:58 AM |
|
 
 |
