Polls will open today from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and representatives from Elections Ontario say that long waiting lines are unexpected.

The election season officially opened in Ontario after a month-long campaign that saw a battle between parties over best approaches for affordable costs, healthcare, and infrastructure.

Voters must also bring an official ID form along with their registration cards or two ID cards with them to their designated polling station.

Around 10 a.m., Elections Ontario said it had learned of technical problems at polling stations and is working to fix them, although it did not specify the number of affected locations.

Polling station changes

Elections Ontario announced Thursday morning that some polling stations in downtown Toronto and Mississauga East Coxwell will move to new locations.

Here is a list of polling stations that have changed locations:

1001 Bay Street and 887 Bay Street have been moved to YMCA Metro Central at 20 Grosvenor Street.

473 Yonge Street has been moved to the University of Toronto Metropolitan Student Centre at 55 Gould Street.

486 Paisley Boulevard has been moved to Cashmere Avenue Public School at 3455 Cashmere Avenue.

Elections Ontario advises people to check their polling stations by searching their postal code on the Elections Ontario website or app early.

Although there are fewer polling stations this year compared to 2018, Elections Ontario spokesperson Joe Langham said that the voting process on election day is expected to be "faster and easier" now.

Langham added this morning on a radio program, "We don’t expect people to bump into each other in long lines."

Langham said that polling stations "which rely on technology" as well as wide spaces for physical distancing will allow voters to cast their votes faster than previous elections.

The new model adopted by Elections Ontario - which allows the next voter in line to go to any poll worker instead of waiting for the assigned one - will also help get voters through as quickly as possible.

Polls conducted earlier in the campaign indicate that the Progressive Conservative Party, led by Doug Ford, is on course to form a second majority government.

In the same context, Ford campaigned based on his party's promises to build highways and hospitals in Ontario, along with other measures described as creating jobs.

Both the Democrats and the New Democrats presented themselves as the only alternative to Ford's Conservatives, but they did not explicitly say they would work together in the event of a Progressive Conservative minority.

This could be Andrea Horwath's last election as leader of the New Democratic Party, as she runs for a fourth term as Premier after her party made gains in 2018 to form the official opposition in parliament.

Horwath voted in Hamilton on Thursday morning, and Ford is expected to vote in Toronto today.

The Green Party in Ontario, led by Mike Schreiner, hopes to expand its one-seat caucus - won by Schreiner in Guelph four years ago - and looks toward a possible breakthrough in Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte.

Leaders are expected to hold events in the evening after results emerge.

On the same topic, officials from Elections Ontario said more than one million people voted in advance polls last month and also noted a sharp rise in mail-in ballot requests compared to the 2018 election.

Mail-in voting kits were sent to 126,135 eligible voters this time, up from 15,202 ballots in the previous election.

Edited by: Dima Abu Khair