Advance voting expected to be higher than in 2013

Saturday is the last day for voters in Nova Scotia to cast their ballots early and it appears advance voting is up in this provincial election campaign over 2013.

"In 2013, we had 100,698 votes cast by the end of advance voting. In terms of where we are today, it's 92,000 as of [Friday] night so it is quite likely we are going to be over that," said Andy LeBlanc, policy and communications director for Elections Nova Scotia.

Typically, three quarters of all votes are cast on election day so the early numbers signal a strong overall turnout, he said.

"Certainly most of the votes will likely come in, and generally always have come in, on election day so that's the day we'll really know whether we're up on turnout or not."

Easier for early-bird voters

Early voting has gone very smoothly, LeBlanc said.

Compared to advance polling in past elections, it was a lot easier for voters this time around, he said. They were allowed to vote early at any polling station at any location across the province.

Advance polls close at 6 p.m. Saturday.

Final voting will be Tuesday May 30, election day, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.