A wave of voters in HRM marked their ballots in the final hours of advance polls heading into Saturday's municipal election.

Thursday, 11,586 people turned to the phone or internet to cast their vote. That brought the final advance tally to 67,007 people.

"Voter participation in the closing hours of the Electronic Advanced polls in HRM was very strong," Returning Officer Cathy Mellett said in a release.

Advance voting started Oct. 6 and ran for 12 days. Overall, 22.47 per cent of eligible voters in HRM voted before Election Day.

Now that the advance polls are closed, voters must go to a poll station Saturday to cast their ballot.

At the end of the day, HRM will have a new mayor after Peter Kelly announced he is not reoffering. There are six candidates in the running: Fred Connors, Aaron Eisses, Steve Mackie, Tom Martin, Robert (Wesley) McCormack, and Mike Savage.

Advance polls have proved to be a draw in the province in the past. In 2011, Nova Scotia saw a 75 per cent increase in the advance turnout in the federal election.