Canadians turned out in unprecedented numbers during the advance voting period for the 2025 federal election, with Elections Canada reporting a record-breaking 7.3 million ballots cast — a 25% increase from the 5.8 million recorded during the same period in 2021. Newly released figures provide a closer look at which days and regions led the charge in early participation.
Advance polls were open from Friday through Monday, and each day exceeded turnout from the 2021 election. Friday saw a dramatic spike in early voting, with 2,054,525 Canadians casting ballots — up more than 650,000 from the same day in the previous election. Monday saw the highest turnout of all, with 2,100,273 voters showing up, breaking the final-day record of 1.9 million in 2021.
Turnout dipped slightly over the Easter weekend, with 1.66 million voting on Saturday and 1.47 million on Sunday, but those figures still surpassed the 2021 numbers for the holiday period.
Every province and territory except Yukon reported increased advance voter turnout. Ontario led the country with nearly 2.8 million ballots cast, followed by Quebec at 1.6 million and British Columbia at just over 1.1 million. Ontario also recorded the largest jump in participation compared to four years ago, with over 563,000 more advance votes. B.C. followed with an increase of 291,000 ballots.
Here’s a breakdown of the estimated advance turnout by province and territory
- Ontario: 2,792,881
- Quebec: 1,595,591
- British Columbia: 1,104,151
- Alberta: 815,131
- Manitoba: 229,379
- Saskatchewan: 206,754
- Nova Scotia: 210,030
- New Brunswick: 202,006
- Newfoundland and Labrador: 75,691
- Prince Edward Island: 40,015
- Northwest Territories: 3,631
- Nunavut: 967
- Yukon: 4,748 (the only region with lower turnout than 2021)
The deadline for mail-in ballots and early in-person voting has now passed, but voters who haven’t yet participated still have the opportunity to cast their ballots on election day, Monday. Polls will be open for 12 hours across the country, with hours varying by time zone. Those in line at the time polls close will still be allowed to vote.
Canadians are encouraged to check their local candidates and party platforms to ensure they cast an informed vote.
Originally published on Weekly Voice