Their reasons for getting out early vary.
"The economy, that's probably the biggest issue for me," said Peter Xing, waiting in a line at a Vancouver polling station. "And just the whole world politics, I think we just need a strong leader."
Some voters told CBC News they were in line for more than two hours at a polling station in Vancouver's West End.
In St. John's, Carl Aylward said he was motivated by U.S. President Donald Trump's rhetoric about Canada becoming the "51st state."
"This is why I want to get out," he said. "We're not for sale."
Across Toronto, voters were also reporting lines up to two hours long, with some saying they've never seen such long lines to vote.
While some were heartened, taking to social media to call the turnout "
incredible" and "
momentous," others
complained about slow ballot processing.
At the southeast Winnipeg community centre, where temperatures were still below freezing when polls opened, Barbara Maguire said the lineup was "already out the door" when she arrived around 9:15 a.m.
"This is a vital election for Canada, and I'm just thrilled to see the turnout this early in the morning," she said.
In Prince George, B.C., Tracy Larson said she arrived to vote at Trinity United Church with her husband at 11 a.m., and they stuck out a two-and-a-half hour line because they'll be out of town on election day.
Normally, she said, they'd be in and out of the polling station in "10 or 15 minutes."
It was a tough wait for the couple, as her husband has mobility issues and uses a walker.
Larson said some elderly people weren't able to wait.
Canadians reported long lines as polling stations opened for advance voting on Friday. Advance polls will be open again 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. nationwide Saturday through Monday.
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Last week, Elections Canada said more than 130,000 Canadians
had already voted by special ballot, more than double the number cast at the same point in the 2021 election. The agency issues special ballots to Canadians who don't want to wait until election day or for advance polls.
We went this evening. It was dead. Just us but in my riding there is zero chance of my CPC MP losing. Oddly it's a heavily NDP leaning riding Provincially. I had no idea who the Lib, NDP, Green or PPC candidates were until I read the ballot.
For voters who plan to turn up for advance polls, Maudsley says the best times to avoid long lines tend to be before 10 a.m. and after 4 p.m.
