Last day for advanced polls with Londoners contributing to a record-breaking weekend

Kendra Seguin · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 21, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 2 minutes ago

Londoners were among the record-breaking fig of Canadians who formed their ballots astatine beforehand polls implicit the play with Monday marking the past time to ballot aboriginal astatine a polling station.

A record-breaking 2 cardinal Canadians voted during Friday's archetypal time of beforehand polls, according to a societal media station by Elections Canada. Electors reported agelong lines and waits of up to 2 hours in immoderate parts of the country, including successful London wherever lineups were much than an hour.

By Sunday, astir London polling stations were quieter with nary lines, but inactive had a dependable watercourse of radical going in-and-out. 

Several London voters said concerns astir the U.S. and its leadership, combined with escaped clip implicit the Easter play holiday, prompted them to ballot early. 

"It's conscionable a play disconnected for us, but it's besides that a batch of the governmental issues successful Canada close present are truly important," said Calista Coleman, who deed the polls astatine Museum London connected Sunday. She said it was her archetypal clip voting early.

"Politically, a batch is going connected successful the States. It's truly important that our ballot is heard this year," she said.

Other voters agreed that extra clip disconnected connected the play and the sunshine made voting easier. 

"We're beardown advocates that the ballot should instrumentality spot connected the weekend," said Tyler Pettipas, who voted aboriginal with his woman Sunday morning. 

He said helium was going into the polling presumption reasoning astir however Canada is responding to threats from the U.S. and the warfare successful Ukraine.

"It's astir having a beardown leader," Pettipas said. "It doesn't mean they person to beryllium brash oregon anything, but perpetrate to what they privation to do, accidental what they're going to bash and propulsion done it."

Election Day is simply a week Monday, connected April 28. It's inactive imaginable to ballot astatine an Elections Canada bureau earlier Tuesday astatine 6 p.m., oregon by message earlier end-of-day connected Tuesday. To find accusation astir wherever to ballot and what to bring is elaborate connected the Elections Canada website.

James Cornish, a Londoner retired Sunday to vote, said helium hopes the fig of voters implicit the play is a motion that much radical volition ballot this year.

"I deliberation it astir apt has to bash a batch with the improvement southbound of the border, and besides a batch of occupation with the outgo of surviving currently," said James Cornish, who says helium usually votes successful beforehand polls. 

Other voters said cardinal predetermination issues see workers rights, affordability and the environment.

"I consciousness similar implicit the past fewer years, determination hasn't been a batch happening for younger radical truthful I conscionable privation idiosyncratic who listens to america and protects our planet," said Coleman.

She says she hopes chap young voters were among those who voted aboriginal implicit the weekend.

"I heard a batch astir the provincial [election] and however radical didn't vote," she said. "I anticipation that they're seeing the effects of it and present know, 'I person to bash this and I person to bash it early.'"

At South London Community Centre connected Sunday, 24-year-old Eric Gireada besides said helium hopes his procreation hits the polls connected predetermination day, if they haven't already.

"In my circles and the radical I'm around, we each powerfully advocator for it due to the fact that if you don't travel to vote, it's benignant of a weird thing," helium said. "You person a voice, you're fixed the accidental to person state and to marque a change, and to not usage that…it's benignant of a waste."