Here’s the latest on British Columbia’s wet and wild election

British Columbians went to the polls on Saturday, with election day marked by torrential rain and high winds across much of the province.

Here’s the latest on the narrow race between the New Democrats, led by David Eby, and John Rustad’s B.C. Conservatives:

12:17 a.m.

Elections BC says it won’t finish counting votes for three ridings due to “weather related disruptions” and the availability of election officials.

The elections body says it won’t have final results for Cariboo-Chilcotin, Surrey-Newton and North Coast-Haida Gwaii on election night, and 16 other ridings are still counting absentee ballots.

It says the province’s “vote anywhere” options have some electoral districts counting votes from “dozens of other contests.”

Elections BC says there will be automatic recounts in ridings where the two top contenders are separated by 100 or fewer votes, which will happen from Oct. 26 to Oct. 28.

Other votes, such as those done by mail and delivered after advanced voting closed, won’t be counted until Elections BC does its “final count.”

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12:15 a.m.

Angelo Isidorou, B.C. Conservatives’ executive director, says he expected a tight race that would come down to a few votes.

He says the turnout for advance voting was likely a signal that people wanted change but he pondered whether the election day weather had any impact on day-of voting.

Isidorou says B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad was the “key to the success” of the campaign, calling it a “Cinderella story.”

He says he believes that if the NDP are re-elected, it would be due to former BC United candidates that chose to run as independents — particularly in Vernon and Richmond-Steveston. He says Conservatives there would have “surely won if it were not for those independents.”

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12:10 a.m.

NDP Leader David Eby says while the final vote count is not in, there was a clear majority for the progressive values.

Eby says he has congratulated Green Leader Sonia Furstenau for running a “strong and principled campaign.”

Eby says he is recommitting himself to working for British Columbians every single day to get things done for those who are struggling.

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11:30 p.m.

NDP Leader David Eby says he’s committed to working with the Greens and the two parties have “many values that they share in common.”

Speaking to supporters at the party’s election night event in Vancouver, Eby says he doesn’t agree with Conservative Leader John Rustad on many issues, but Rustad spoke to British Columbians’ frustrations on issues such as public safety and living costs.

Eby says the NDP must do better if it forms the next government, something he vows to do.

11:20 p.m.

B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad says the political landscape in the province has “changed forever” after his party pushed the incumbent New Democrats to the brink, in an election that is too close to call.

With a handful of ridings yet to be called, both parties strained to reach a majority.

Rustad says if David Eby did manage to return to power with a minority government, he would take every opportunity to bring the government down.

The Conservative leader says he’s still optimistic that his party may form government as there are still votes left to be counted.

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10:45 p.m.

The B.C. Green Party’s Rob Botterell, a retired lawyer who won the riding of Saanich North and the Islands, says it was an “exciting day” for him.

He says he’s “honoured” for the opportunity to serve his constituents on the island.

Botterell says he thinks he can make a “major contribution,” having dealt with governments extensively over the years.

He says he’ll be working with Leader Sonia Furstenau and the member he replaced, the Green’s Adam Olsen, along with the party’s other successful candidate Jeremy Valeriote.

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10:30 p.m.

David Black, an associate professor at the school of communications and culture at Royal Roads University, says if the election stays as tight as it appears to be, the Greens will end up with some “real bargaining power” making them “kingmakers” in the legislature.

Black says the pair of rookie Green MLAs will likely rely on the support of Leader Sonia Furstenau, who lost her bid for re-election, and former MLA Adam Olsen, for support when crafting a confidence and supply agreement with whatever larger party tries to form government.

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9:47 p.m.

Aisha Estey, president of the B.C. Conservatives, says she expected a tight race for government, but was optimistic her party would pull ahead of the NDP.

She says the mood in Conservative headquarters is “on a knife’s edge,” swinging between optimism and nervous excitement as results — which remain too close to call — roll in.

Estey says the election has “been the ultimate underdog story” for the party.

She says she’s really proud of her team and the momentum they gained throughout what she calls a “historic campaign,” adding that even becoming official opposition is also a “huge accomplishment.”

“Whether it’s government tonight or official opposition, we’re not going anywhere. There’s Conservative Party in B.C. now finally,” she said. “We’re back.”

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9:45 p.m. (Valeriote is pronounced vah-LARE’-ee-it)

A second B.C. Green candidate has won their riding in the provincial election, giving the Greens official party status in the legislature.

Jeremy Valeriote won in West Vancouver — Sea to Sky, after his colleague Rob Botterell won Saanich North and the Islands, previously held by fellow Green Adam Olsen, who did not run.

Valeriote is the first ever Green candidate to be elected on B.C.’s mainland.

It comes after Green Leader Sonia Furstenau lost her bid for Victoria-Beacon Hill.

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9:32 p.m.

It continues to be a tight race for which party will form the next government in British Columbia.

About 90 minutes after the polls closed, the NDP is elected or leading in 46 ridings while the B.C. Conservatives are elected or leading in 45, although the lead has changed several times.

The B.C. Green Party is elected or leading in two ridings.

Forming a majority government in B.C. requires 47 of the legislature’s 93 seats.

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9:25 p.m.

Several more NDP cabinet ministers have retained their seats, while others will not return to the legislature.

Tourism Minister Lana Popham has won in Saanich South and Jennifer Whiteside, the minister of mental health and addictions, has won in New Westminster-Coquitlam.

Nathan Cullen, who served as the NDP minister of water, land and resource stewardship, has lost the riding of Bulkley Valley-Stikine to Conservative Sharon Hartwell.

Education Minister Rachna Singh has also lost her seat to Conservative Mandeep Dhaliwal in Surrey North, and Dan Coulter, who served as minister of state for infrastructure and transit, lost the Chilliwack North riding to Conservative Heather Maahs.

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9:14 p.m.

B.C. Green Leader Sonia Furstenau says it appears her party will play a “pivotal” role in the legislature after what is shaping up to be a very tight election.

She lost her seat in Victoria-Beacon Hill, but told supporters at an election night party that she is passing the torch and will be there to mentor and lead in any way she can.

Furstenau says “it’s a strange time in politics when, during an atmospheric river, people come out and vote for a party that’s denying the reality of climate change.”

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9 p.m.

Numerous NDP cabinet ministers have retained their seats as results continue to roll in from the provincial election.

Health Minister Adrian Dix has been re-elected in Vancouver-Renfrew, while Jobs Minister Brenda Bailey has won her race in Vancouver-South Granville.

In Burnaby Centre, Municipal Affairs Minister Anne Kang will return to the legislature, and so will Emergency Management Minister Bowinn Ma in North Vancouver-Londsdale.

On Vancouver Island, Energy Minister Josie Osborne has won her seat in the riding of Mid Island-Pacific Rim.

Lisa Beare, minister of post-secondary education, has also been re-elected in Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows, while Citizens’ Services Minister George Chow won his race in Vancouver-Fraserview.

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8:57 p.m.

B.C. Green 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 riding of Saanich North and the Islands was formerly held by the Green’s Adam Olsen, who was first elected in 2017, serving as the party’s house leader in the legislature

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8:55 p.m.

B.C. Conservative candidate Jody Toor has been elected in the new riding of Langley-Willowbrook.

Toor beat NDP candidate Andrew Mercier who is minister of state for sustainable forestry innovation.

Toor was the subject of controversy during the campaign after the Hospital Employees Union filed a complaint against her with the College of Complementary Health Professionals of BC.

They say she presented herself as a medical doctor despite not being registered with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia.

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8:51 p.m.

B.C. Conservative candidate Brent Chapman has been elected in the riding of Surrey South.

He defeated the NDP’s Haroon Ghaffar, who was the only other person running in the urban riding.

Chapman was the focus of significant controversy and calls for him to be removed as the Conservative candidate over social media posts he wrote that called Palestinian children “inbred” and “time bombs” and for agreeing with a podcast host who described the residential schools topic as a “massive fraud.”

Conservative Leader John Rustad stood by Chapman, saying it would be up to voters to judge.

8:40 p.m.

About 40 minutes after polls closed, more than half of B.C.’s ridings already have a winner declared, but the race to form government is still too close to call.

Early returns show the New Democrats and the Conservatives neck and neck.

Both NDP Leader David Eby and Conservative Leader John Rustad retained their seats, Eby in Vancouver-Point Grey and Rustad in Nechako Lakes.

Green Leader Sonia Furstenau, however, lost in Victoria-Beacon Hill to New Democrat Grace Lore.

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8:35 p.m.

B.C. Green Leader Sonia Furstenau has lost her bid for re-election to NDP cabinet minister Grace Lore.

Furstenau ran for re-election in Victoria-Beacon Hill after representing the Cowichan Valley riding since 2017.

Lore is the incumbent in the riding, having first been elected in 2020.

She is the minister of children and family development.

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8:30 p.m.

NDP Leader David Eby has been re-elected in his riding of Vancouver-Point Grey.

Eby was first elected in the riding in 2013, beating out then-premier Christy Clark.

He was acclaimed as NDP leader in October 2022, replacing John Horgan.

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8:22 p.m.

Two NDP ministers have been re-elected in their ridings.

Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon has been re-elected in Delta North and Attorney General Niki Sharma has been elected again in Vancouver-Hastings.

Kahlon is also the NDP house leader and was first elected in 2017.

Sharma is the first woman of colour to serve as B.C’s attorney general and was first elected in 2020.

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8:18 p.m.

B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad has been re-elected in his riding of Nechako Lakes, which he has represented since 2005.

In August 2022, Rustad was banished from the provincial Liberal caucus, now BC United, and went on to be acclaimed as leader of the B.C. Conservatives.

Incumbent Bruce Banman, who crossed the floor from BC United to the Conservatives in 2023, has also been re-elected in Abbotsford South.

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8:05 p.m.

NDP Leader David Eby is awaiting the results of the election in a hotel room at the party’s Vancouver election night headquarters surrounded by family members, including his wife, children and in-laws.

Eby is seated on a couch with his wife Cailey Lynch, who is holding their youngest child, Gwen, who was fast asleep.

Eby’s son Ezra is playing cards and his daughter, Iva, is colouring.

He looked relaxed and comfortable in the minutes before results were set to arrive.

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8 p.m.

Supporters and candidates of the B.C. Conservatives began filing into the party’s election headquarters at Rocky Mountaineer Vancouver Station as polls closed at 8 p.m.

People could be seen mingling around seven rows of white chairs that faced a stage where Leader John Rustad is expected to speak after the count.

Behind the platform is a large British Columbia flag.

Four smaller flags flank each side of the stage, and large screens that had displayed the Conservative Party of British Columbia logo started playing election coverage.

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8 p.m.

The polls have closed for the 2024 B.C. provincial election.

This is the first provincial election using electronic tabulators and Elections BC has said it expects to have substantial results within the hour.

The election also saw a record number of advance ballots cast, with more than one million people voting prior to election day.

To win a majority, a party has to come away with at least 47 seats in the 93 seat legislature.

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7:50

John Coupar, B.C. Conservative candidate for Vancouver-Little Mountain, says he believes his party will likely win the election.

He says he’s hopeful but uncertain about whether he will win his riding, noting that he knew it would be a tough race when he joined because Vancouver “tends to be an NDP stronghold.”

He says he was a member of the park board for 11 years and hopes that people see that he “gets things done” and that is reflected by him winning his riding.

Coupar says there was “a lot of negativity from the NDP” throughout the election but regardless of the result, all members of the party should be proud.

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7:20 p.m.

New Democrat Ravi Kahlon, B.C.’s housing minister, says he’ll be in two locations tonight, starting at the NDP’s election night headquarters at the Marriott Pinnacle Hotel ballroom in downtown Vancouver, then joining volunteers at his Delta North riding.

Kahlon says he did a lot of door knocking during the campaign and many people wanted to talk about housing.

He says he heard from many people who were supportive of the NDP’s approach to building more affordable homes.

He says health care was also a top issue for voters.

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7:00 p.m.

Elections BC says at least three voting sites have been shut down due to power outages.

Two sites in Cariboo-Chilcotin in the B.C. Interior were closed, as well as one in the Lower Mainland riding of Maple Ridge East, with voters being redirected to other sites or asked to call the election agency for voting options.

Several sites in Kamloops, Langley and Port Moody, as well as on Hornby, Denman and Mayne islands, were temporarily shut due to power outages associated with wild weather but reopened by mid-afternoon.

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6:30 p.m.

Independent candidate Karin Kirkpatrick, who is running for re-election in the riding of West Vancouver-Capilano, says her campaign has been told voters who can’t get to a location to cast their ballot because of the extreme weather may still be able to vote by phone.

Elections BC says telephone voting is available for voters in emergency or exceptional circumstances who are not otherwise able to vote by calling 1-800-661-8683.

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5:45 p.m.

An election-day storm stalled voting in several areas of the province.

Torrential rain and high winds knocked out power to voting places in more than half a dozen locations.

Voters on Haida Gwaii, on Denman, Hornby and Mayne islands, in Kamloops, the Bulkley Valley, Langley and Port Moody had to delay their votes because of power outages.

The lights remain out at Alexander Robinson Elementary school in the riding of Maple Ridge East and election officials are on site to direct voters to other polling stations.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2024.

The Canadian Press