Some polling stations have droves of people lining up to cast their ballots for the municipal election.
Samples of some of the the lineups at polling stations around Greater Victoria. Many residents eager to have their say during the municipal election. #yyj #yyjpoli #bcpoli pic.twitter.com/XaL5nDfJtQ
— Goldstream Gazette (@GoldstreamNews) October 20, 2018
Long lines have been seen around the region including at Margaret Jenkins Elementary in Victoria, Monterey Centre in Oak Bay and Pearkes Recreation Centre in Saanich.
The afternoon is expected to be a quieter time to go and vote as lineups will die down.
Not all polling stations are very busy, Colwood had no lineups and the voting process is roughly 10 minutes.
Don't forget to vote today if you haven't already! Colwood City Hall is busy but lineups at noon were minimal. The entire process took less then 10 minutes. #colwood #ElectionDay pic.twitter.com/i4D7hjNMxn
— Goldstream Gazette (@GoldstreamNews) October 20, 2018
According to a presiding officer in Langford the voting period is running smoothly and there have been a steady stream of people coming in.
There were a few dozen voters ready when the doors opened in Langford Saturday morning.
Langford resident Sean Smith came out early to vote before he heads to work.
Have you voted yet? Sean did! ☑️
— Goldstream Gazette (@GoldstreamNews) October 20, 2018
Polls have been open for just over half an hour and there's been dozens of people in to vote at Ruth Kin Elementary.#yyj #yyjnews #bcpoli #yyjpoli pic.twitter.com/PUi4n2iUGM
Voters across British Columbia will choose a mayor, council and other leaders in local government.
Polls are open in Greater Victoria at the following locations until 8 p.m. PT:
Central Saanich poll locations
Individual Learning Centre, 1649 Mount Newton Cross Rd.
Central Saanich Cultural Centre, 1209 Clarke Rd.
Colwood poll location
Colwood Municipal Hall, 3300 Wishart Rd.
Esquimalt poll location
Esquimalt Recreation Centre, 527 Fraser St.
Highlands poll locations
Community Hall, 729 Finlayson Arm Rd.
District office, 1980 Millstream Rd.
Langford poll locations
Millstream Elementary School, 626 Hoylake Ave.
Ruth King Elementary School, 2764 Jacklin Rd.
Metchosin poll location
Metchosin Community Hall, 4401 William Head Rd.
North Saanich poll location
North Saanich Municipal Hall, 1620 Mills Rd.
Oak Bay poll locations:
Emmanuel Baptist Church, 2121 Cedar Hill X Rd.
Monterey centre, 1442 Monterey Ave.
Monterey school, 851 Monterey Ave.
Saanich poll locations
Campus View Elementary School, 3900 Gordon Head Rd.
Cedar Hill Middle School, 3910 Cedar Hill Rd.
Cedar Hill Recreation Centre, 3220 Cedar Hill Rd.
Cloverdale Traditional School, 3427 Quadra St.
Cordova Bay Elementary School, 5238 Cordova Bay Rd.
Doncaster Elementary School, 1525 Rowan St.
Frank Hobbs Elementary School, 3875 Haro Rd.
Glanford Middle School, 4140 Glanford Ave.
Gordon Head Recreation Centre, 4100 Lambrick Park Way
G.R. Pearkes Recreation Centre, 3100 Tillicum Rd.
Hillcrest Elementary School, 4421 Greentree Terrace
Lochside Elementary School, 1145 Royal Oak Dr.
Prospect Lake Elementary School, 321 Prospect Lake Rd.
Reynolds Secondary School, 3963 Borden St.
Saanich Commonwealth Place, 4636 Elk Lake Dr.
Spectrum Community School, 957 Burnside Road West (3751 Grange Road)
Victoria Alliance Church, 1792 Townley St.
Sidney poll location
Mary Winspear Centre, 2243 Beacon Ave.
Victoria poll locations
Burnside Gorge Community Centre , 471 Cecelia Rd.
Central Baptist Church, 833 Pandora Ave.
Cook Street Village Activity Centre, 380 Cook St.
Victoria High School, 1260 Grant St.
James Bay Community School, 140 Oswego St.
James Bay New Horizons Centre, 234 Menzies St.
Margaret Jenkins School, 1824 Fairfield Rd.
Oaklands School, 2827 Belmont Ave.
Quadra School, 3031 Quadra St.
St.Barnabas Church, 1525 Begbie St.
Sir James Douglas School, 401 Moss St.
Victoria West School, 750 Front St.
View Royal poll location
View Royal Elementary School, 218 Helmcken Rd.
Eagle View Elementary School, 97 Talcott Rd.
Who is running?
Mayor Ryan Windsor will remain at the helm in Central Saanich where he was elected in 2014, so when voters head to the polls they will choose six councillors from the nine who have put their name forth.
In the City of Colwood, incumbent Carol Hamilton faces off against Rob Martin for the mayor’s seat while 11 candidates vie for six spots on council.
In Esquimalt, 10 candidates are vying for six spots on council while incumbent Barb Desjardins is challenged in the race for mayor by John Roe.
Mayor Ken Williams who was elected to the top seat in 2014 will be acclaimed come Oct. 20 having faced no opponents.
And while Coun. Karen Burns has decided to vacate her seat on council, Rose Stanton has decided to take a shot at municipal politics making it an even six candidates running for six councillor positions.
In the City of Langford, Robert Fraser is challenging Stew Young in the mayoral race with seven candidates running for six councillor positions.
In Metchosin, Mayor John Ranns will serve a seventh term as mayor facing no opponent this time around, but eight candidates will vie for four positions on council.
Facing no opposition, all six candidates including Joscelyn Barnard, Heather Gartshore, Jack McClintock, Brett Smyth, Celia Stock and Murray Weisenberger, will have a seat on North Saanich council. Residents will, however, have a say in the race for mayor as two candidates square off for the top spot.
In Oak Bay, incumbent Nils Jensen is challenged by mayoral candidate Kevin Murdoch while 10 candidates are running for six councillor positions.
In Saanich, four candidates are vying for the mayor’s seat, while 18 candidates running for eight spots on council.
In the Town of Sidney, Cliff McNeil-Smith is challenging incumbent Steve Price in the mayoral race while 11 council candidates run for six seats.
Ten candidates are on the ballot for the City of Victoria mayor’s race but a last-minute withdrawal by Rob Duncan means nine candidates are vying for your vote with 29 candidates running for eight seats on council.
View Royal Mayor David Screech will resume his seat for a second term, as he faced no opposition in this election. Six candidates are running for four seats on council.
Who is running for school board?
Greater Victoria School District
Voters will elect nine trustees for the Greater Victoria School District.
Voters will elect seven trustees for the Saanich School District but the only votes to be cast are coming from the District of Central Saanich.
Voters in SD62 will elect seven trustees for the district with four coming from the West Shore and three coming from Sooke and Port Renfrew.
For all of our stories on the municipal election, click here, or go to your local Black Press newspaper’s website and click on the election tab.
Check out our website and Facebook page for full coverage of the results starting at 8 p.m. PT.
