Voters cast ballots in municipal elections across Quebec
Residents in 858 municipalities casting ballots today
Quebecers cast ballots at 858 municipalities across the province today.
Polling stations closed at 8 p.m.
- Go here to see live election results from across province
- CBC's full Quebec municipal elections 2017 coverage
As of 4 p.m., a total of 31.59 per cent of eligible voters had cast their ballots in Montreal — this includes electors who voted in advance, according to Élection Montréal.
In 2013, 43 per cent of eligible Montreal voters exercised their democratic right to vote in the municipal election.
In Montreal, a poll done in mid-October suggested a virtual tie between the two main candidates vying for the mayor's seat: Denis Coderre, the incumbent, and Valérie Plante of Projet Montréal.
In Rosemont–La-Petite-Patrie this morning, Plante cast her ballot surrounded by cameras.
"I am extremely proud of the ideas that we've put forward, of the vision we've presented, of the work of my team on the ground," she said.
Coderre, for his part, voted right after polls opened in Montreal North.
"The population now has the floor," said Coderre. "We deserve their confidence. We hope to have their confidence and their support."
What are the races looking like?
The Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough's mayoral race is also shaping up to be tight, as Projet Montréal's newcomer and former journalist Sue Montgomery attempts to beat incumbent Russell Copeman.
Copeman is seeking his second mandate as borough mayor and running with Équipe Coderre.
Meanwhile, many in Pierrefonds-Roxboro are still feeling the effects of the flooding that devastated the area last spring. Throughout the campaign period, the city's flood response has been a hot topic.
Westmount has a three-way race between the town's interim mayor, Christina Smith, who replaced longtime mayor Peter Trent when he retired. Smith is being challenged by Suburban newspaper editor Beryl Wajsman and city councillor Patrick Martin.
In Saint-Lambert, candidates are arguing for new rules that could replace the suburb's prohibition-era alcohol regulations and presenting initiatives that would re-introduce bars to the area.
In the Eastern Townships, Sherbrooke's campaign has focused on revitalizing the city's core, with candidates offering competing visions of how to do so.
And in Saguenay, a fresh face will be voted in to replace Mayor Jean Tremblay, who is retiring after 20 years in office.
In the capital, Quebec City electors will have to decide whether to re-elect incumbent Régis Labeaume, nicknamed "King Régis" for his brash manner and imperial style, or to go with one of the two people running against him.
There are still many municipalities in Quebec where candidates are running unopposed. However, some of the most interesting races are in Quebec's small and far-flung communities: In Blanc-Sablon, two women are hashing out their competing visions of the future for the village on Quebec's Lower North Shore.
A snapshot in numbers
Come Monday morning, there will be many new faces on municipal councils, as well as some familiar ones.
According to the province's Municipal Affairs Ministry, there are a total of 12,924 people vying for one of the 8,015 mayor or councillor positions across Quebec.
Thirty one per cent are women, which is up from 2013, when only 25 per cent of candidates were women.
Make a date with CBC for election night:
Online: Get breaking news and live results at cbc.ca/montreal after polls close at 8 p.m.
On Facebook: Join host Debra Arbec for a 90-minute Facebook Live starting at 10 p.m. with results, analysis and reports from across Quebec.
On TV: Watch our live results show at 11-11:30 p.m. on CBC Television.
On radio: Listen to CBC Radio One starting at 8 p.m. for a province-wide show hosted by Mike Finnerty in Montreal and Susan Campbell in Quebec City.
With files from Radio-Canada