COLD LAKE – Of the 11,074 eligible voters in the City of Cold Lake, 25.1 per cent cast a vote for a total 2,780 votes.
With slightly more than 25 per cent of Cold Lake residents voting in the municipal election, Mayor Craig Copeland said he was impressed with the turnout for the election. “Maybe the numbers may appear to be low, but in fact for Cold Lake, the numbers were, I thought a big improvement and so that's exciting.”
During the last two municipal election, the city saw a significant drop in voter turnout. In 2017, 16.2 per cent of residents voted and in 2013 only 10.94 per cent of eligible voters cast a ballot.
Copeland speculates that if there had been a mayoral race this election, more residents could have been drawn out to vote, but all in all, he feels that nine per cent increase from the last election was a huge success, with any residents taking advantage of drive-thru voting.
“It's a great number and I don't think we should be looking at it from a negative standpoint, I think it's positive that more people got up and got out and voted,” says Copeland, adding “I saw a wide demographic voting, and I think the candidates themselves did a great job trying to get people out.”
Other questions on the ballot
Official results from the provincial referendum questions and questions on access to family doctors asked to Cold Lake voters were announced on Friday by the City.
Of the voters who answered the first provincial referendum question included by the province, 1,909 people voted “yes” to removing equalization payments from the constitution while 713 voted “no” to the question.
Of those who answered the second provincial referendum question of whether to adopt year-round daylight saving time, 1,802 Cold Lake residents voted “yes,” while 893 voted “no” to the question.
The City of Cold Lake also asked electors to answer three questions regarding their access to family doctors in the city.
According to Megan Beaudoin, the City’s communications coordinator, “council’s intention was to see if the results warranted a more extensive study into the issue, which could potentially be managed through the next municipal census, where more detailed and nuanced questions can be posed to all households.”
To the question, “Do you have a family doctor in Cold Lake?” Nearly 68 per cent of 2,718 respondents answered “yes,” and 32.5 per cent replied “no.”
To the question, “Do you want a family doctor in Cold Lake?” About 80 per cent of 2,123 respondents replied “yes,” and 20.3 per cent answered “no.”
To the question, “Have you tried to get a family doctor in Cold Lake?” Roughly 67 per cent of 2,035 respondents answered “yes,” and 33 per cent replied “no.”
Historical voter turnout in the City of Cold Lake:
2021 – 25.1 per cent
2017 – 16.2 per cent
2013 – 10.94 per cent
2010 – 27.5 per cent
2007 – 26.85 per cent
2004 – 42.41 per cent
2001 – 35.85 per cent
1998 – 33.07 per cent
