Canada 2011 Official Thread

[Linus Van Pelt]

Also it's well run enough

Or, maybe it isn't.

[minionofmidas]

Why exactly has the NDP surged? Is it just the result of Layton's debate performance?

That was part of it.
Also, obviously, once the NDP outpolls the Liberals, a lot of tactical voters switch sides - Harper's support has basically been steady not just all through the campaign, but all through his premiership. He's very polarizing.
And then there's Quebec, which is a realignment (a genuine one, for once) that has been in the post for a few years, but that no one expected to happen that quickly.
In a nutshell.

[Bacon King]

Also it's well run enough

Or, maybe it isn't.

Wow. How do Canadian olds typically vote?

[Linus Van Pelt]

Also it's well run enough

Or, maybe it isn't.

Wow. How do Canadian olds typically vote?

A bit more Conservative than average, though probably more Liberal than average in certain parts of Toronto involved in the story.

The "maybe" in my piece above isn't just rhetorical, by the way - the Star hyperventilating like this is perfectly consistent with this being just a few isolated incidents.

[Verily]

Polls close in Newfoundland not too long from now, no? 7:30 their time, right, which is 6:00 Eastern? Is that right? Any news from N&L?

[You kip if you want to...]

Good luck et bon chance to the NDP!

[Filuwaúrdjan]

I'm a little out of it at the moment (and will be until I get to eat again at some point tomorrow; might not be online ar hyd y nos though I hope to be) so can't remember the usual answer to this question so must ask again; what times (BST) to the polls in each set close?

[Jens]

At what time can we expect the first results? (and perhaps what time CET )

[Meeker]

Polls close in Newfoundland not too long from now, no? 7:30 their time, right, which is 6:00 Eastern? Is that right? Any news from N&L?

8:30 their time, so 7:00 Eastern.

[Meeker]

I'm a little out of it at the moment (and will be until I get to eat again at some point tomorrow; might not be online ar hyd y nos though I hope to be) so can't remember the usual answer to this question so must ask again; what times (BST) to the polls in each set close?

At what time can we expect the first results? (and perhaps what time CET )

Everything will be available at 10:00 EST (so 3:00 AM GMT and 4:00 AM CET). Ontario, Quebec and the Prairies close at 9:30 EST but they can't put anything on the internet until BC closes at 10.

They won't be able to count much in the first half hour anyways so it's not that big of a deal. The Atlantic provinces (34 seats) will probably be wrapped up by 10 so we'll get a lot of solid numbers out of there really quickly.

Also who knows what will pop up on Twitter...

[Jens]

I'm a little out of it at the moment (and will be until I get to eat again at some point tomorrow; might not be online ar hyd y nos though I hope to be) so can't remember the usual answer to this question so must ask again; what times (BST) to the polls in each set close?

At what time can we expect the first results? (and perhaps what time CET )

Everything will be available at 10:00 EST (so 3:00 AM GMT and 4:00 AM CET). Ontario, Quebec and the Prairies close at 9:30 EST but they can't put anything on the internet until BC closes at 10.

They won't be able to count much in the first half hour anyways so it's not that big of a deal. The Atlantic provinces (34 seats) will probably be wrapped up by 10 so we'll get a lot of solid numbers out of there really quickly.

Also who knows what will pop up on Twitter...

Thanks - so I might as well go to bed early - anybody knows some sort of live stream accessable from Europe?

[Meeker]

I think CBC.ca and CTV.ca will have streams starting at 10 EST... C-SPAN.org will also be simulcasting the CBC feed.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Thanks for that.

[cinyc]

Polls close in Newfoundland not too long from now, no? 7:30 their time, right, which is 6:00 Eastern? Is that right? Any news from N&L?

Polls close by time zone.  Precincts in the Newfoundland and Atlantic time zones close 8:30 local time, which is 7:00 Eastern in Newfoundland and a small part of Labrador and 7:30 PM Eastern in most of Labrador, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and part of one or two ridings in Quebec.

In Quebec, the Îles-de-la-Madeleine part of Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine is in the Atlantic Time Zone for sure.  I seem to recall getting some early results from that riding in past elections.  I think the Eastern part of Manicouagan is on Atlantic time, too - though I don't remember if we got some early results from there in the past.

Edited to add: Most of Labrador might be officially on Newfoundland time but unofficially on Atlantic time.  I have no idea how that is handled.  In any event, it's just a half hour's difference, anyway.

[Holmes]

Off to vote in about half an hour.

[Insula Dei]

Damn, I thought this was tomorrow and now have made the epic mistake of drinking slightly too much, which means the allnighter I'm going to pull is going to be deadly and I have a 9:00 AM class and a family visit tomorrow. Uhg.

[MaxQue]

Voted.

Took 45 minutes, lines were long at the polling station.

[Bacon King]

Also it's well run enough that you wouldn't see those ridiculous long lines

Voted.

Took 45 minutes, lines were long at the polling station.

Anecdotal evidence of really high turnout? How long do you normally wait to vote Max?

[MaxQue]

Also it's well run enough that you wouldn't see those ridiculous long lines

Voted.

Took 45 minutes, lines were long at the polling station.

Anecdotal evidence of really high turnout? How long do you normally wait to vote Max?

First time I vote.
But my mother said than lines are usually long there, but not so long.
It is a office workers precinct, so, everybody is going to vote at 5PM.

[Marokai Backbeat]

Max's riding is also one of the more contentious Quebec ridings. It's practically a 4-way race.

[Holmes]

I didn't wait at all to vote... there was literally 15 polling stations in the hall. No waits.

[Bacon King]

Ah, thanks Max/MB.

In other news, Harper broke the law today by making campaign statements on the radio.

[Foucaulf]

What's the absolute best case scenario for the NDP? I take it that even with Layton cashing in on being the most likable federal politician for the past 3-4 years official opposition status is way out of their reach?

The talented Éric Grenier calculated 44 seats. I suspect this is an understatement. The NDP can hope for 50-60 seats if there was a real collapse of the Liberal Party - mind you, this would almost certainly result in a 200+ seat majority for the Tories...

Realistically, I have trouble seeing them gain much more than they have. They might hit 40 seats if the Liberals do badly, but that assumes the Liberals would be worse off now than they were in 2008 under Dion running on the Green Shift.

I - perhaps we - forget how different things were a month ago. I'm not drinking until I see preliminary results, though.

Any plans for a new results thread?

[You kip if you want to...]

Canadians can't campaign on election day? ...That's silly.

[Teddy (IDS Legislator)]

I'm drinking already. The waiting is killing me.