How big a deal is election day for staff at the agency tasked with overseeing it?

"This is our game seven of the Stanley Cup final and the finale of the Eras Tour all wrapped into one," said Elections N.B. CEO Kim Poffenroth.

Polling stations will be open until 8 p.m. Monday to allow voters across the province to cast ballots for the MLAs they want to lead the province through the next four years.

While it's a big deal for the agency, if things go according to plan, it should be relatively calm at their head office, said Poffenroth.

"The heavy lifting today is being done by all of our hard-working poll workers and returning-office staff across the province," she said.

By the numbers

While many people still have to cast their ballots, a good number of New Brunswickers have already done so.

As of 2 p.m., more than 80,000 people had voted, said Elections N.B. spokesperson Paul Harpelle.

Another 150,000 ballots were previously cast during the province's two days of advanced voting at returning offices and at special polls at hospitals and care homes, said Poffenroth.

She doesn't like to compare the numbers to 2020, since that election was affected by the pandemic, but the numbers are a "significant increase" over 2018, she said.

It's too early to tell whether these numbers will translate to more people voting today, but Poffenroth said she is optimistic.

About 80,000 New Brunswickers had cast ballots on Monday as of 2 p.m., according to Elections N.B. (Patrick Morrell/CBC News)

"I hope that it's indicative of more people taking advantage of their voting opportunities and more people getting out to vote," she said. 

"It's going to be a beautiful day in New Brunswick, [a] great day to go to the polls, meet your neighbours and vote."

More than 6,300 people had been added to the voter rolls before Monday, and that number is set to go up as people can still register to vote at the polls.

Talking to voters in Fredericton

Beck Dunham voted for the first time on Monday, in the Fredericton-Lincoln riding.

He was "pretty excited" but also found it "scary," he said. "It's a big thing to kind of contribute to what might change around us in the coming years."

Beck Dunham, who is from the Fredericton area, said he decided to vote for the first time because he felt it was important to make his voice heard. (Shane Fowler/CBC)

Lorraine Macleod made sure she cast her ballot Monday at Église catholique Ste-Anne-des-Pays-Bas voting station in Fredericton.

"Soldiers fought and died for my freedom to vote. It is very important to me, and every vote counts," she said.

"If we want change, we have to vote for change. So I'm here to do that and I hope that change will come. But if not, I will know I've done the right thing and I'm happy to vote and exercise my right."

Macleod said others should vote too if they "don't like what's happening — otherwise, don't complain."

Neil Livingstone said he was used to voting at a school in his riding of Fredericton-Lincoln and was a bit surprised to find he had to vote at a nearby church instead. (Shane Fowler/CBC)

Fredericton resident Neil Livingstone said he couldn't imagine not voting. 

"I believe in democracy, You know, I think we all have a choice."

Although Livingstone admits he didn't pay much attention to the campaign because he was "so distracted by the American election," he said he knew he planned to vote for Green Party Leader David Coon.

"I am voting for my favourite colour, army green. Did 28 years in the military, so the green is in my blood."

Gene Campbell said he has alway been interested in politics, and paid close attention to the campaign in his riding of Fredericton-Lincoln. Rent control and the cost of living were key issues for him, he said.

A few hiccups

There have been some minor hiccups this election season.

On Monday morning, the "Where Do I Vote?" feature on Election N.B.'s website was experiencing delays "due to the high number of visitors," according to the agency, which said it was aiming to increase network capacity.

Elections N.B. is also having to take calls from concerned voters who have discovered their riding has recently changed due to redrawn boundaries.

Poffenroth said over 150,000 votes were already cast during the province’s two days of advanced voting. (Andrew Vaughan/Canadian Press)

Poffenroth said it's been difficult for returning officers to find places to put polls this year.

"In some cases … there's been one available space, just because of the large development in some of the urban areas," she said.

And while Poffenroth isn't expecting any major delays in announcing the results, spotty cellphone coverage could impact reporting at a few polls.

"Those results will have to be called in and then digital information transferred later in the day," she said.

Good to know

If people have a voter information card, they should bring it to the polls to make things go smoothly, Poffenroth said. But if they don't, or aren't yet registered, they can bring a combination of identification that include their name, address and signature.

If you're in line at a regular polling station by 8 p.m., you will be allowed to vote, no matter how many people are in front of you or how long it takes.

Poffenroth said if people have a voter information card, they should bring it with them to the polls. If they don’t, or aren’t yet registered, bring a combination of identification that includes their name, address and signature. (CBC)

While you can still vote at a returning office until 8 p.m., that's a hard cut-off. If you haven't voted by 8 p.m., you won't get to.

"If you're planning on waiting till the last minute to vote or you get caught up at something, don't go to your returning office," said Poffenroth.