Advance polls in Alberta's election now open

Albertans got their first chance to cast ballots for the upcoming provincial election Wednesday as advance polling stations opened.

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Advance polls will be held across the province until Saturdayfrom 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.:

• Wednesday, April 29.
• Thursday, April 30.
• Friday, May 1.
• Saturday, May 2.

The election will be held next Tuesday, May 5.

After a last-minute hiring blitz, Elections Alberta says most electoral districts in Calgary now have a full complement of staff for election day.

"So now, once again, we've executed the plan, now we run the event and see what happens and hopefully everyone comes out and we get a 100per cent turn-out," said spokesman Drew Westwater.

In the last provincial election,54per cent of eligible voters cast a ballot.

Alberta's upcoming election could be the closest the province has seen in almost half a century.

According to Vote Compass, governmentaccountabilityis the No. 1issue among Albertans.

According to the report, 19.7 per cent of Albertanssaidaccountability as their top concern, followed by health care (11 per cent), the budget deficit (10.6 per cent), education (10.2 per cent) and government spending (10 per cent).

The resultappears to contradict a claim by Progressive Conservative Leader Jim Prentice that Albertans had to go to the polls a year earlier than required because he needed a mandate to make changes put forward in the provincial budget.