The race is too close to call.
There appears to be no clear winner in Saturday's provincial election 鈥� at least for now 鈥� with the leadership race remaining neck-and-neck between B.C. NDP Leader David Eby and Conservative Leader John Rustad.
As of 11 p.m. PST, neither party had secured the 47 ridings needed to form a majority government in the 93-seat legislature. A mere 20,000 votes set the New Democrats slightly ahead, with 96 per cent of total ballot boxes reported, according to Elections BC.
The 43rd provincial election marked the first to use a new electronic tabulation process for votes, however final counts will be by hand. That final count will happen between Oct. 26-28, which will clarify ridings that on Saturday were too close to call. If, after that, the difference between two or more candidates in a riding comes within 1/500th of the total votes cast, there will be a judicial recount.
Much like in 2017, the B.C. Greens may be positioned to play a key role in the future of the province.
On Saturday night, Green Leader Sonia Furstenau said her party was poised to play a "pivotal role" in the legislature.
The Greens will retain two seats, with Rob Botterell victorious in Saanich North and the Islands and Jeremy Valeriote winning in West Vancouver-Sea to Sky.
None of the 40 or so Independent candidates were victorious, raising the prospect of a minority government with the Greens holding the balance of power.
Furstenau lost to the NDP's Grace Lore after switching ridings to Victoria-Beacon Hill, but said she was "so excited" for her two colleagues, calling their wins "incredible."
"This is a passing of the torch and I am going to be there to mentor and guide and lead in any way that I can," she told her supporters in Victoria.
There had already been a big turnout before election day on Saturday, with more than a million advance votes cast, representing more than 28 per cent of valid voters and smashing the previous record for early polling. An atmospheric river hitting the Lower Mainland didn't seem to put a damper on total voter turnout, at roughly 57 per cent.
More to come.
鈥� with files from The Canadian Press
