Voter turnout fell to an all-time low in Thursday's Ontario election, during which just 49.2 per cent of eligible voters, about 4.1 million people, showed up to cast a ballot according to early data.

Provincial voting numbers have been in a steady decline over the past several elections.

In 2007, 52.1 per cent of voters went to the polls; 56.8 per cent of voters participated in 2003.

Carleton University political science professor Jon Pammett said the 50-per-cent mark is more of a mental barrier than a significant voting milestone.

"I'm not sure I'd say it's significant, but you might consider it symbolic," he told The Canadian Press. "It's a symptom of an overall attitude to public participation."

Some observers had expected a higher turnout because the advance polls were so busy. Early ballots were cast by some 625,000 Ontarians, almost four times more than in the 2007 election. The weather was also fair across the province.

However this election also offered advance voters more options -- advance polls were extended to ten days before the election and votes could be cast by mail or in person at a returning office.

The results run counter to those of the recent federal election when some 60 per cent of Canadians turned out for the polls, up slightly from the 58.8 per cent seen during the prior vote in 2008.

The results also contradict the theory behind fixed-date elections. The province is one of seven provinces that have adopted fixed election dates -- in the hope that regularly scheduled elections will lead to increased turnout and prevent any unfair advantage for incumbent governments. Since 2005 Ontario elections have been held every four years on the first Thursday of October.

Low turnouts are usually thought to favour the government, while higher showings favour the Opposition.

Voter apathy may have helped Dalton McGuinty's Liberals, but not enough to land a majority. The Grits look to have missed their third straight majority by a single seat, though the final results are not expected for several days. Tim Hudak's PCs, again the Opposition, came on strong early in the campaign but lost momentum as the vote drew closer.

Some observers have blamed a boring campaign for the low voter turnout; others have suggested it was the inability of the political parties to differentiate themselves.

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath suggested on Friday that voters had been turned off by a negative campaign.

"If politics continues to just be about the ugly fighting between people who want power, the people of the province, the voters, the residents of Ontario, get lost in that fight," she said. "Then it's no wonder that they become cynical and they walk away from voting."