Nearly one million residents of Ontario cast their votes during the 10-day advance voting period, representing an increase of several hundred thousand compared to 2018.

According to preliminary figures released by Elections Ontario, 1,066,545 voters — 9.92 percent of eligible voters in Ontario — attended a polling station and voted during the advance voting period.

Compared to the 2018 Ontario election, 698,609 voters, or 6.8 percent of eligible voters, chose to cast their ballots during five days of advance voting.

Political strategist Suhair Shafiq said this strong early voter turnout shows that people have more time to cast their votes.

She added Monday morning: "It is definitely a best practice we should continue for future elections because it works. The figures released on Monday provide a useful lesson on how to engage voters to actually cast their ballots."

But she said these early voting numbers may not necessarily reflect overall voter turnout figures.

During the federal election in October, more than 700,000 mail-in ballots were cast, nearly half of them in Ontario. This compares to nearly 55,000 mail-in ballots cast in the 2019 federal election.

People who wish to vote on election day must attend their designated polling location. Elections Ontario urges voters to double-check where they should vote by entering their postal code into the Voter Information Service. This information is also available on the Elections Ontario app or your voter information card.

Meanwhile, Elections Ontario is still looking for people to work as election officials. This job will require using paper or electronic tools and will include paid training. Visit jobs.elections.on.ca to apply.

Edited by: Dima Abu Khair