Saskatoon polling station opens late due to missing ballots

CTV News caught up with residents as they headed to the polls Wednesday, and some voters said their democratic right to vote was delayed because of a ballot issue at one polling station.

Still, it was a far cry from the issues for those who remember the 2020 election.

It was a very different day, weatherwise, for voters like Simon Houston who walked to the super poll at City Hall.

Similarly, Jayden Bissky who works downtown, headed to the poll on her lunch break from work.

“It's pretty nice outside. I didn’t need a jacket today,” Bissky said.

It’s quite different compared to the last time we elected a mayor and council when a snowstorm in 2020 resulted in voting being extended after election day to allow people to get to the polls.

This time around there was a brief hiccup at a Montgomery polling station. The city confirmed that voters in that neighbourhood couldn’t mark their X at 8:00 a.m. when voting was scheduled to start.

City Clerk Adam Tittemore told CTV News in an email that the polling station at St. Dominic School experienced a “supply-related challenge” and wasn’t able to open until approximately 8:30 a.m.

Once the ballots were made available, voting resumed as usual.

Among those we spoke to who were entering and leaving polling stations, there was a common issue on their minds.

“Homelessness is a big issue. Then there's all this resistance in all these neighborhoods because they don't want a homeless shelter near them because they think their kids or teenagers will be corrupted by the people that are from the shelter,” Simon Houston said.

“Lots of people are talking about homelessness,” Bissky said.

“Issues like homelessness and crime downtown especially,” Bissky added.

Some of those we caught up with are anticipating change at city hall this election, like Jasmine Doran, who researched the mayoral candidates to ensure they were in sync with what she viewed as important for the city.

“What I really want to know is not only what issues are important to them, but how they're going to address those issues. So, definitely was looking for that.”

“It’s going to be interesting to see who wins. Personally, I want to see a woman win for mayor. I think that would be a nice change of pace,” Houston said.

Sarita Chauhan is originally from India and experienced her first vote in a civic election.

“I feel really proud that I did vote today. This is a great opportunity for me, that how this city will grow and how we can see the different changes in the city. That’s a great experience for me.”