Early voting draws 46,000 New Brunswick voters

Elections New Brunswick says more than 46,000 voters have already cast their ballots with just a week to go in the election campaign.

The first day of advance voting on Saturday drew 33,736 people out to vote. In addition, Elections New Brunswick says 12,669 have voted with special ballots.

In comparison, there were 49,167 advance votes cast over two days in 2010.

Voters can also cast a special ballot at any returning office in the province until 8 p.m. on Sept. 22.

Voters will have another chance today to vote in the advance polls from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. There are 169 advance voting stations set up and 1,176 staff working for Elections New Brunswick at these polls.

There will also be 13 campus voting locations set up at university and college campusesstarting on Monday.

The riding of Fredericton-Grand Lake saw the highest voter turnout on Saturday with 1,136 people voting in the advance polls.

The Fredericton-area riding has PC incumbent Pam Lynch running against Liberal Sheri Shannon, Peoples Alliance Leader Kris Austin, NDP candidate Bronwen Mosher and Green Party candidate Dan Weston

The next four ridings with the largest number of voters coming out to the advance polls have long track records of voting for the same party:Shediac-Beaubassin-Cap-Pel (1,136), Edmundston-Madawaska Centre (1,079), Tracadie-Sheila (1,048) and Shippagan-Lameque-Miscou (1,032).

Shediac-Beaubassin-Cap-Pel is a new riding, but it covers an area that is considered among the safest for the Liberals.

Progressive Conservatives Madeleine Dub and Paul Robichaud are running inEdmundston-MadawaskaandShippagan-Lameque-Miscou, respectively,and each have been in the legislature since 1999. Progressive Conservative Claude Landry was elected in 2006, but his riding has been with the Tories since 1994.

Meanwhile, the ridings that saw the fewest numbers of people voting in the advance polls were: Miramichi Bay-Neguac (311) and Kings Centre (389).

The hotly contested riding of Fredericton South saw 572 voters cast an advance ballot.

That race has PC candidate Craig Leonard running against Green Party Leader David Coon, NDP candidate Kelly Lamrock, the former Liberal education minister, Liberal Roy Wiggins and Independent Courtney Mills.