'This year has been tough:' Election day in N.B., in the middle of a pandemic

FREDERICTON -- Voters in New Brunswick head to the polls today after a brief provincial election campaign notable for the unusual steps candidates had to take to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thanks to health and hygiene rules, there were no handshakes, no kissing of babies, no rallies and no community barbecues.

Much of the low-key campaign was conducted on social media, though there was some door-to-door campaigning -- all done at a safe distance.

Progressive Conservative Premier Blaine Higgs -- who often wore a full face shield while on the hustings -- called the election only 21 months into his first term, saying his minority government wasn't stable enough.

He told voters he needed a majority to govern a province initially left reeling by the pandemic.

Anything less, he said, would put the province at risk.