NWT election turnout up 10 percent – unofficial figures

Elections NWT reported an increase of 10 percent in voter turnout in 2019 as it published unofficial figures on Wednesday.

In a tweet, election administrators said turnout averaged 54 percent across the NWT. That’s up from 44 percent in 2015.

The change appeared to be driven by significant increases in Yellowknife districts.

Kam Lake, which posted a meagre 25-percent turnout in 2015, was shown rising to a 48-percent turnout as the district elected Caitlin Cleveland to replace Kieron Testart this week.

In Frame Lake, the battle between Kevin O’Reilly and Dave Ramsay – which now heads to a recount – drew a 45-percent turnout, the figures suggested, up from 28 percent four years ago.

No Yellowknife districts reached a 50-percent turnout in 2015. In 2019, three of them hit that mark: Range Lake, Yellowknife North, and Yellowknife South.

The lowest turnout anywhere in the NWT was Yellowknife’s Great Slave district, at 43 percent – still up significantly from 27 percent four years ago.

The Thebacha district also posted a large increase, going from 51 percent in 2015 to 68 percent in 2019.

Nunakput and Tu Nedhé-Wiilideh, which had been the most engaged districts in 2015, reclaimed their titles in 2019, albeit with turnout slightly down.

Seventy-one percent of Nunakput voters showed up to vote, as did 70 percent in Tu Nedhé-Wiilideh.

These numbers are likely to change slightly when the final report on the election is published. In 2015, turnout figures for most districts rose or fell by one or two percent in the final report compared to unofficial figures.