The 2022 Ontario election is on Thursday, June 2. (Election Ontario image)
Voter turnout in Grey Bruce ridings fell sharply in the 2022 Ontario election along with the rest of the province, with early data from Elections Ontario indicating the lowest voter participation in history.
This year, with nearly 98 per cent of polls reporting in Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound, over 41,500 ballots have been counted. That’s a turnout of 46.2 per cent, a significant drop compared to 2018. The riding had more than 49,600 voters cast ballots four years ago — a turnout of 58.39 per cent.
Progressive Conservative Rick Byers won in Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound this year, running in the riding for the first time after Tory Bill Walker left provincial politics following an 11-year run as MPP.
Huron-Bruce saw its voter turnout decline to 54.28 per cent, as Progressive Conservative Lisa Thompson secured a fourth term. In 2018, more than 52,500 people cast ballots in the riding for a turnout of 65.13 per cent.
According to Elections Ontario, with nearly 99 per cent of polls reporting, just over 43 per cent of the more than 10.7-million eligible voters in the province took part in the 2022 provincial election. It’s the lowest turnout ever.
The 2011 Ontario election marked the previous low for voter turnout — 49 per cent — multiple media reports say.
Ontario saw a significantly higher turnout in the 2018 election, with 57 per cent of eligible voters casting a ballot.
More than 1.9-million people voted for Ford’s Progressive Conservatives in the 2022 election (40.84 per cent). The Liberals (23.85 per cent) and NDP (23.72 per cent) each received just over 1.1-million votes.
Ford and the Progressive Conservatives won a second majority government, and will return to Queen’s Park with 83 MPPs in the legislature.
The advance voting period this election saw a big increase compared to 2018, with more than 1-million Ontarians voting ahead of June 2. Nearly 10 per cent of eligible voters cast a ballot during the 10-day advance voting period.