Physical Address

304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124

B.C. Election Day Live: Eby, Rustad re-elected, Green leader loses riding to NDP

There goes another election day. British Columbians showed up despite the rain to vote and with polls now closed, the province will soon know if NDP Leader David Eby will continue as premier or if a new provincial government will form.

The campaign had been a tighter race than many expected, with B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad offering a compelling alternative for many British Columbians and B.C. Green Leader Sonia Furstenau putting up a strong fight.

Key issues put forth during the campaign included housing affordability and axing B.C.’s carbon tax. You can read about the parties’ takes on 12 hot topics HERE.

We’ll have live coverage of the day’s events, results as they come in and reporters covering results from various ridings across Metro Vancouver. So, save this post and hit refresh throughout the evening.

After the polls close, you can find out how your riding voted and explore close races across B.C. using this map:

READ MORE: B.C. election results 2024 — A riding-by-riding map of the vote

• Vancouver • Surrey • Burnaby • Richmond and Delta • Langley • North Vancouver and West Vancouver • Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and New Westminster • Maple Ridge and Port Moody • Abbotsford and Chilliwack • Okanagan and around B.C. • Vancouver Island

The NDP and Conservatives keep trading the lead as the vote count in a few of the tightest races comes in.

As of 9:15, the Conservatives are ahead in 46 ridings, the NDP in 45, and the Greens in two.

Polling delays in one of those tight races, Surrey-Cloverdale, is part of the confusion, while other races are within handfuls of votes between the two leading candidates.

B.C. Green Party candidate Rob Botterell has won the riding of Saanich North and the Islands, maintaining his party’s presence in the provincial legislature.

However, party leader Sonia Furstenau was defeated after switching ridings to Victoria– Beacon Hill.

The Greens went into the election with two seats in the legislature.

The B.C. NDP have pulled ahead with a slight lead, with just over 81 per cent of ballot boxes reporting.

As of 8:56 p.m., the B.C. NDP were leading or elected in 48 ridings, while the Conservatives were leading or elected in 43.

The B.C. Greens are holding on to two ridings.

British Columbia Premier and NDP Leader David Eby has won re-election in the riding of Vancouver-Point Grey.

Eby was first elected to the riding in 2013, when he defeated then-premier and former B.C. Liberal leader Christy Clark. He is a former executive director of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association who became premier in 2022 after John Horgan stepped aside.

Eby was challenged in Vancouver-Point Grey by B.C. Conservative candidate Paul Ratchford, who says on a social media profile that he is the owner of a private real estate company.

Meanwhile, Green party Leader Sonia Furstenau has lost her seat in the legislature after changing ridings to Victoria-Beacon Hill, a result that was met with cheers from the crowd at the B.C. Conservative event where the results were being displayed on stage.

Furstenau lost to Grace Lore, the minister of children and family development in the previous NDP government.

The Green leader was first elected 2017, when her party played a key roll in helping the New Democrats form government with a confidence and supply agreement between the two parties.

-Canadian Press

VANDERHOOF, B.C. — British Columbia Conservative Leader John Rustad has been re-elected in his riding of Nechako Lakes.

Rustad was kicked out of the Opposition B.C. United Party for his support on social media of an outspoken climate change critic in 2022, and last year was acclaimed as the B.C. Conservative leader.

Buoyed by the B.C. United party suspending its campaign, and the popularity of Pierre Poilievre’s federal Conservatives, Rustad led his party into contention in the provincial election.

Among the early winners were the NDP’s Ravi Kahlon in Delta North and Niki Sharma in Vancouver-Hastings, as well as the Conservatives’ Bruce Banman in Abbotsford South.

-Canadian Press

Just 15 minutes after poll closing, it appears the B.C. NDP and B.C. Conservatives are tied, with each party leading in 44 ridings.

The B.C. Green party is leading in one electoral district.

Just over 14 per cent of ballot boxes had been reported as of 8:18 p.m.

With polls now closed, it won’t be long before we know which political party will lead B.C. in the coming years.

Compared with previous provincial elections, voters won’t have to wait long to get at least a preliminary idea of which party will form the next government in Victoria.

Results will begin being reported minutes after polls close, Wesley MacInnis of Elections B.C. said, thanks to electronic tabulators being used for the first time in a B.C. provincial election.

And networked laptops will be used to look up voters and cross them off the voters list, replacing phone book-thick paper lists and, it’s hoped, reducing the time voters spend lined up.

Paper ballots will also be counted by electronic tabulators on election night. Elections B.C. keeps all the ballots, however, for audits and recounts.

As well, random tabulators are selected for quality assurance tests, making sure a hand count matches the electric count, and all recounts of closely contested races will be by hand.

Read more about how the votes will be counted HERE.

As B.C.’s provincial election heads into the final hour of voting, both the B.C. NDP and the B.C. Conservatives are readying their party venues.

The B.C. NDP will host an election night event at the Vancouver Marriott Pinnacle Downtown Hotel, while the B.C. Conservatives will spend their evening at the Rocky Mountaineer Train Station.

Interestingly, photos from inside the venues show that the B.C. NDP has opted for a standing room setup, while the Conservatives have gone with rows of chairs in front of the stage.

Most of the polling stations that were temporarily shut down Saturday afternoon due to power outages have since reopened.

Elections B.C. spokesman Andrew Watson said most of the weather-related disruptions have been resolved.

In Langley Township the polling station at Donna Gabriel Robins elementary school in the riding of Langley-Walnut Grove had to resort to manual, paper-based procedures, he said. “It is fully operational again and serving voters.”

Election officials are prepared to run polling stations without electricity, he said. The paper-based procedure isn’t expected to cause any significant delay in the counting of the ballots after polls close at 8 p.m.

“It really depends on the nature of the outage and how many voters are at that location and how long the outage lasts for,” he said.

In cases of power outages, ballots go into a secured ballot box attached to the tabulator that’ll be counted once power is restored.

Two voting places temporarily shut down in Kamloops-North Thompson have also reopened. That closure was due to a non-weather-related power failure.

The only polling station that has shut down for the day is in Dease Lake in the riding of Bulkley Valley-Stikine. The closure was caused by the lack of election officials to staff the location.

While there are other polling stations in the riding, the electoral district is large and voting places are spread out.

Voters in Dease Lake are encouraged to call Elections B.C. at 1-800-661-8683 to discuss their voting options, such as assisted telephone voting, said Watson.

Frances Collins, district electoral officer for Burnaby East, says so far there have been no issues with voters accessing polling stations.

The district includes some pretty mountainous terrain around Simon Fraser University, several major waterways — Burnaby Lake, Still Creek and Stoney Creek — as well as major transit corridors like Barnet Highway, Lougheed Highway and Highway 1.

Lots of localized flooding has been reported.

“We’re doing OK. Winston Avenue (near Burnaby Lake) is flooded pretty badly but we’re getting around it all right,” she said. “Forest Grove (halfway up Burnaby Mountain) is flooded a bit but voting still going well there too.”

In B.C. provincial elections, voters can vote at any polling station, not necessarily their riding, so they can choose a location that is convenient for them, said Watson.

Voting stations are open until 8 p.m.

With files from Patrick Johnston.

B.C. Conservative Party Leader John Rustad cast a ballot in Vanderhoof on Saturday.

Accompanied by wife Kim Royle, Rustad voted at the Cluculz Lake Community Hall near Vanderhoof in his riding of Nechako Lakes.

“This is the first time Kim and I have ever voted for the Conservative Party of B.C.!” said Rustad in a post on X.

B.C. Green party Leader Sonia Furstenau also voted Saturday morning in her Victoria-Beacon Hill riding.

B.C. NDP Leader David Eby and wife Cailey Lynch cast their ballot in advance voting at Kitsilano community centre on Oct. 10.

The atmospheric river bringing heavy rain and strong winds to the B.C. south coast wreaked havoc on some voting places on election day.

About eight polling stations experienced closures or delayed openings due to power outages, said Elections B.C.

Donna Gabriel Robins elementary school in the riding of Langley-Walnut Grove was temporarily closed Saturday morning due to a power failure.

Elections B.C. said officials were on-site to direct voters to “alternative voting opportunities.”

Voting stations in Hornby Island, Denman Island, Mayne Island, Kamloops, Dease Lake, and Bella Bella were also affected.

Some polling stations, including the Mayne Island community centre and Denman Island seniors hall, have reopened.

Check here for updates on the status of voting places.

Everyone stay calm, it’s happening: The polls are opening for the final day of the provincial election.

Voting stations across B.C. are open at 8 a.m. today and close at 8 p.m.

For a list of where to vote in your riding, click HERE.

Following the end of advance voting on Wednesday, Elections B.C. said more than a million British Columbians had cast their ballots. The figure breaks a record that was set during the 2020 election at the height of the pandemic.

The elections body says 1,001,331 people have voted, representing more than 28 per cent of all registered electors and putting the province on track for a big overall turnout.

Read more here on the advance voting turnout.

Elections B.C. says it is working closely with B.C. Hydro to make sure voting goes smoothly on Saturday, even if there are power outages because of the rain and wind storm hitting the B.C. South Coast.

Spokeswoman Melanie Hull said B.C. Hydro is aware of all voting locations and will make them a priority if there are any outages.

“Voting places are equipped with manual backup supplies in the event of a prolonged outage,” said Hull. “For example, election officials will used paper-based backup procedures if laptops are unavailable.”

The heaviest rain and wind are expected to arrive overnight Friday and into Saturday afternoon.

RACE FOR B.C.: Follow our coverage of the 2024 B.C. election campaign HERE. Not yet a subscriber? Please click HERE for a special subscription offer.

en_USEnglish