Nova Scotia election campaign enters final week, early voting up over 2017

Elections Nova Scotia says that 60,684 early votes had been cast as of Aug. 7

HALIFAXtoday \  Canadian Press

HALIFAX — With one week to go in Nova Scotia’s provincial election campaign, political observers say there could be surprises at the polls next Tuesday.

Tom Urbaniak, a political scientist at Cape Breton University, isn’t predicting any outcomes but says he has a sense the situation is “quite fluid” for the three main political parties.

With 13 incumbent candidates not running in this election, Urbaniak says that makes the outcomes less certain in a number of the province’s 55 ridings.

Lori Turnbull of Dalhousie University agrees, adding that with a redistribution of ridings and an expected low voter turnout there is more potential volatility among the electorate.

Turnbull says it will boil down to how well the party leaders communicated their messages and how organized each party is in competitive ridings.

Meanwhile, Elections Nova Scotia says a total of 75,367 early votes had been cast as of Monday — more than twice the number at the same point during the 2017 election, when 32,935 early votes had been cast.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 10, 2021.

The Canadian Press