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With the election quickly approaching, the community is getting their first opportunity to vote! The advance polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday. You can go to the Herman Prior Activity Centre to cast your vote. Here in Portage la Prairie, we have 4 candidates for mayor, 14 for city council, and 14 for school board trustee. Diane Van Aert, the Senior Election Official for the City talks about why advance polls are important.
"It's a great opportunity to get out and vote if you know that you're unavailable on Election Day, or just to get it done ahead of time in case something comes up on election day," she continues. "This year we have quite large ballots. There are a lot of people running. If you don't get out and vote you have no say in who's going to represent you on City Council for the next four years. So, it's very important that you get out and vote for the council that you want."
The Senior Election Official mentions that you need to go to the polls prepared.
"You may be asked to show ID or proof of residency when you go to vote so, it helps to bring that with you in case you need it. If you are unavailable for the advance poll as well as Election Day, you can come to City Hall any day up until election day, including election day, and you can vote by sealed envelope."
Van Aert says that this is not your only chance to vote, and that any eligible voter can vote on Saturday no matter what part of the city you live in.
"For election day, if you're wondering where you vote, you can look on our website. There's a map on there because where you vote on election day depends on where you live in the city. There's also a poll finder on our website. You can just put in your address, and it will tell you where to vote."
The Senior Election Official concludes by saying that if you have any other questions about where to vote or anything about the election, you can call her at (204) 239-8337.