Special coverage of B.C.’s 2026 snap election has begun—bringing you expert analysis, live updates, and up-to-the-minute results.
Will voters reward David Eby’s gamble with a renewed B.C. NDP mandate, or hand the B.C. Conservatives the reins for the first time in nearly 100 years?
Follow along for the latest election day updates below.
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Key details
- Polls close across the province at 8 p.m. PT
- Live election results can be found here
- Ballots cast today will be counted by hand
- Polling stations in some locations have 'limited hours'
Where to find live results
There are several ways to follow results tonight, including the interactive map on our B.C. Election 2026 hub.
Riding winners will also be declared on this blog, as will the next party to form government—unless the results are too close to call on election night, as they were two years ago.
Special coverage is also available across CTV News digital, social and television platforms beginning at 6 p.m. PT. Click here for more details on how to watch.
Doubling efforts in Surrey
The NDP has knocked on twice as many doors in Surrey as it did last election — an apparent acknowledgment of how crucial ridings in B.C.’s fastest-growing city could be in deciding the outcome.
CTV News Vancouver’s Penny Daflos is at NDP headquarters tonight, where she got that update on how the party has adapted its ground game.
CTV News Vancouver’s Penny Daflos is at NDP headquarters tonight, where she got that update on how the party has adapted its ground game.
'Untested moment of crisis'?
During the campaign, the B.C. NDP raised questions about how long Lorne Doerkson would be able to remain premier, if he were to be elected.
The B.C. Conservative Party constitution mandates a leadership race within a year of Kerry-Lynne Findlay’s resignation — and bars interim leaders from running.
The Conservative board of directors responded to those concerns with a statement last month assuring the constitution would be amended for Doerkson, should his campaign succeed.
“A premier chosen by British Columbians deserves the certainty of leading his party. This amendment will provide it,” the board said.
But such an amendment would require a two-thirds vote — in a party that has been plagued by infighting since nearly clinching victory in 2024.
Would Doerkson be able to remain premier if the party chose another leader? “We’ve never run that experiment,” political scientist Stewart Prest told CTV News on the eve of the election.
“It would likely lead to lawsuits,” Prest added. “Historically, courts would be very careful to step into the operation of parliament or legislature … so it would create a kind of untested moment of crisis.”
Live election special starts now
CTV News’ special election coverage begins now, at 6 p.m.
Tune in for live commentary and by-the-minute results updates featuring CTV News anchors Mi-Jung Lee and Rob Buffam, and guest analysts Christy Clark, Mike DeJong, Nathan Cullen, Mario Canseco and more.
Coverage is playing across CTV platforms, including CTVNewsVancouver.ca, CTVNews.ca, on CTV stations across B.C., CTV News Channel, the CTV News app, YouTube, Crave, X and TikTok.
What's at stake for Eby?
NDP Leader David Eby called this election more than two years early, while his party held a majority of seats in the legislature.
If the New Democrats don't expand their majority—even if they hold onto power in a minority government—political scientist Stewart Prest believes history will judge Eby's decision "quite harshly."
“This was a completely voluntary election," Prest told CTV News on the eve of the election.
"David Eby effectively stepped into the docket and invited the judgment of voters, and he's going to have to live with it.”
Anything short of a "resounding return to majority" could lead to calls for Eby to step down as NDP leader, Prest said.
“I don't know that he would be given the grace of remaining on for a period of time to allow the leadership race to replace him to organize itself," Prest said. "I think there will be calls for him to step aside as soon as possible—and I don't know that Mr. Eby would want to stick around because he has really tried the patience of the party's own core supporters and their volunteer base in calling this election.”
Polling during the election period has consistently shown a small lead for the Conservatives.
B.C. NDP Leader David Eby pauses while speaking during a provincial election campaign announcement, in Delta, B.C., on Monday, Oct. 12, 2026. (Darryl Dyck / The Canadian Press)
Issues at some polling stations
Voters have been warned of “limited voting hours" and closures at a dozen B.C. polling stations Saturday, including three in Lorne Doerkson’s riding.
The affected locations represent a small fraction of the more than 1,200 polling stations across the province.
The affected locations represent a small fraction of the more than 1,200 polling stations across the province.
There are seven locations with limited hours:
- Edward Billy Community Centre, Cariboo-Chilcotin
- Dog Creek Community Hall, Cariboo-Chilcotin
- Tl’etinqox School, Cariboo-Chilcotin
- Denetia Elementary School, Bulkely Valley-Stikine
- Dease River Band Office, Bulkley Valley-Stikine
- Kispiox Community Hall, Bulkley Valley-Stikine
- Kispiox Community Hall, Bulkley Valley-Stikine
Another five were closed altogether Saturday:
- Halalt First Nation Gym, Cowichan Valley
- Echen Deni Keyoh Hall, Prince George-North Cariboo
- Summit Lake Community Hall, Prince George-Mackenzie
- Shxw’ōwhámél First Nation Band Office gym, Fraser-Nicola
- Battlefield Community Centre, Fraser-Nicola
The issues are due to different factors in different areas, according to Elections B.C.
“In some voting locations we had limited staff availability, road closures and ferry delays, and access delays to voting locations,” the agency spokesperson told CTV News.
Elections B.C. did not respond to a question about whether any of the problems are related to the fact a provincial election was not anticipated this month.
Battleground: West Vancouver–Sea to Sky
The only Green MLA ever elected on B.C.'s mainland is also the only Green Party candidate running for re-election.
Jeremy Valeriote won West Vancouver–Sea to Sky in 2024 by 676 votes. He took 38.08 per cent of the total ballots cast in the riding, with B.C. Conservative Yuri Fulmer in a close second with 35.61 per cent. NDP candidate Jen Ford took 26.31 per cent in the three-way race.
This time around, there are five names on the ballot.
Joining Valeriote are NDP candidate Michelle Livaja, Conservative candidate Ayla Dumais, OneBC candidate Naomi Chocyk and CentreBC candidate Dan Wood.
The electoral district and its predecessors have been held by the B.C. Liberals and the Social Credit Party before them. It has never voted NDP.
Valeriote's victory in 2024 followed a close loss for the Greens in 2020 in this riding that includes Whistler, Pemberton and Squamish, as well as the western portion of West Vancouver, including Horseshoe Bay.
Valeriote was one of two Greens elected last time around. The other, Rob Botterell, is not seeking re-election in Saanich North and the Islands, where party leader Emily Lowan is running instead.
Motorists travel on the Sea-to-Sky highway between Horseshoe Bay and Lions Bay, B.C., on Friday, April 23, 2021. . (Darryl Dyck / The Canadian Press)
Battleground: Maple Ridge East
Conservative Lawrence Mok, who comes from a background in manufacturing and business management, is looking to defend his position in Maple Ridge East two years after defeating NDP incumbent Bob D’Eith by just 97 votes.
Green candidate Kyle Williams took 1,626 votes in 2024, with D’Eith and Mok collecting 11,961 and 12,058 votes, respectively.
Prior to boundary and name changes, D'Eith won the Maple Ridge-Mission seat for the New Democrats in 2017 and 2020.
The NDP are fielding Hudson Campbell, a trustee for School District 42, against Mok this time. School teacher Daniel Kite represents the B.C. Greens, and the fourth and final candidate is Independent Chris Hatchwell.
Green candidate Kyle Williams took 1,626 votes in 2024, with D’Eith and Mok collecting 11,961 and 12,058 votes, respectively.
Prior to boundary and name changes, D'Eith won the Maple Ridge-Mission seat for the New Democrats in 2017 and 2020.
The NDP are fielding Hudson Campbell, a trustee for School District 42, against Mok this time. School teacher Daniel Kite represents the B.C. Greens, and the fourth and final candidate is Independent Chris Hatchwell.
Political endorsements
Days before the election, Surrey’s mayor-elect Doug McCallum threw his support behind Lorne Doerkson and the Conservatives.
“We changed Surrey, let’s change B.C.,” McCallum said at a rally Thursday.
The event was also attended by former premier Christy Clark, who has been campaigning with the Conservatives.
Green Leader Emily Lowan received a similar boost from Pete Fry, Vancouver’s first mayor-elect from the city’s affiliated Green Party.
Grand Chief Stewart Phillip of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs—a longtime NDP ally—made waves last week endorsing Lowan as well, though he later clarified he was only referring to her riding of Saanich North and the Islands, a Green stronghold.
Phillip endorsed David Eby for premier, calling him the “best choice as leader of this province.”
(THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck)
Battleground: Surrey City Centre
Surrey City Centre was a brand-new riding in 2024, when it became one of the closest races in the province.
The NDP’s Amna Shah was leading Conservative candidate Zeeshan Wahla by a razor-thin margin of 96 votes on election night, forcing a judicial recount that confirmed her victory.
She took 6,726 votes to Wahla’s 6,494 in the final tally.
Wahla, who runs his own engineering consulting firm, is back to challenge Shah, a former Surrey Food Bank director who has served as parliamentary secretary for mental health and addictions under the NDP.
Two other parties will be vying for votes on the political right this time, however, with Raman Sharma running for the more moderate CentreBC and Oliver Wildfong representing the more hard-line OneBC.
Sharma is founder of the Tradesman Association of B.C. and the annual Construction Expo, while Wildfong is co-owner of a Lower Mainland security firm.
Ballots to be counted by hand
Elections B.C. has confirmed that votes cast on election day will be tallied manually, in a departure from 2024, when electronic tabulators were used to count paper ballots for the first time in a general election.
That was hailed as a success in Elections B.C.’s report on the polls, but the agency says in a statement that it’s going back to a manual count due to “short time frames and complex operational logistics of a snap election.”
It says paper ballots cast at advance polling stations and at district electoral offices will be counted with electronic tabulators, and it expects those results to be reported first.
Battleground: Courtenay–Comox
Fewer than 100 votes separated Conservative Brennan Day from former NDP MLA Ronna-Rae Leonard in the 2024 election in Courtenay–Comox.
Day won by just 93 votes and claimed only 38.83 per cent of ballots cast. Leonard was close behind, and Green candidate Arzeena Hamir received more than 7,200 votes—some 20.74 per cent of the total.
This year, Day is seeking re-election against NDP candidate Will Cole-Hamilton, a Courtenay city councillor and chair of the Comox Valley Regional District.
Veterinarian Jay Van Oostdam is running for the Greens this year, and CentreBC's candidate is Jason Cook, a financial services professional.
Historically, the riding has mostly been held by the B.C. Liberals this century. That party's candidate won every election in the district from 2001 until 2017. Leonard held it for the NDP for two terms before Day won the seat for the Conservatives.
Attention-grabbing campaign stories
It’s been a busy 32 days since David Eby called this snap election. Here’s a sampling of some of the more eye-catching headlines from this chaotic campaign.
- B.C.'s Eby asks Doerkson to remove campaign chief over social post calling Islam 'abhorrent'
- NDP mailout sparks complaint from B.C. Conservative candidate
- ‘Absolutely doable’ or ‘wishful thinking’? Doerkson defends costed B.C. Conservative platform
- B.C. NDP leader’s use of subsidized daycare ‘shocking,’ Conservatives say
- B.C. Conservatives dump candidate accused of making Hitler remarks
- Eby accuses B.C. Conservatives of separatist links, faces allegation of politicizing Wainwright tragedy
- B.C. Conservatives plan to end no-fault insurance, leaked letter shows
- Stumping and fundraising: NDP scrambling as Conservatives host $1,500 event before B.C. election
- Clark clarifies 'dumb woman' remark as B.C. NDP leader slams 'ridiculous stories'
- B.C. Conservative leader calls Massey Tunnel replacement a ‘pipe dream
Nail-bitingly close contest in 2024
Two years ago, British Columbians had to wait a week to find out whether the NDP were going to form a majority or minority government as the top candidates in two ridings were within 100 votes of one another, requiring a recount.
The collapse of the B.C. United—formerly B.C. Liberal—party and rise of the Conservatives under then-leader John Rustad was the major story in the lead-up to 2024’s election.
The resurrected right-wing party ultimately took 44 seats, the highest count for the Opposition in B.C. history.
The NDP won 47 seats and the Greens won two.
Look back at the leaders debate
B.C.'s three main party leaders took part in just one live, televised debate during the campaign—trading barbs, criticizing each others' policies and pitching their own visions for the province.
Read more: 5 top moments from B.C. leaders' debate
Battleground: Coquitlam–Burke Mountain
Historically, the electoral district that would become Coquitlam–Burke Mountain has more often been held by right-of-centre parties than the NDP, but the riding has gone orange in the last two elections.
Christy Clark held the riding's predecessor in the early 2000s, as did then-B.C. Liberal and recent B.C. Conservative leadership candidate Iain Black.
When Coquitlam–Burke Mountain was created in 2009, the Liberals' Douglas Horne won it and held it until 2016, when the NDP's Jodie Wickens took it in a byelection.
Wickens was defeated in the general election the following year, but won the seat back in 2024, after it had been won by the NDP's Fin Donnelly in 2020.
Wickens is seeking re-election this year, having narrowly defeated the B.C. Conservatives' Stephen Frolek last time around. Her margin of victory was just 368 votes in the two-person race.
This year, there are four candidates running. The Conservative candidate is Ryan Peterson, a "digital transformation expert" and past chair of the Business Council of British Columbia.
The Greens are running animator Valerie Morrison, and CentreBC's candidate is Kaden Mann.
Eby casts ballot with family in tow
NDP Leader David Eby arrived at his polling station Saturday morning accompanied by his wife Cailey Lynch and their three children.
“I’m ready to go, I’m excited,” he told reporters outside. “It’s an important day for British Columbia.”
Eby cast his ballot with their youngest, Gwendolyn, on his lap.
Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson and Green Leader Emily Lowan both voted in advance of election day.
Leader Profile: B.C. Conservatives’ Lorne Doerkson
It wasn’t that long ago that Lorne Doerkson was a relatively low-profile MLA representing Cariboo-Chilcotin. These days, the 58-year-old is taking centre stage for his party and says he’s “completely in the zone” as he looks to supplant David Eby as premier.
Battleground: Surrey South
The race in Surrey South is notable as CentreBC Leader Elenore Sturko is hoping to keep her seat in the legislature and is running against a familiar face for voters, the outgoing mayor of White Rock, Megan Knight.
Parik Tahlan of the NDP and the Greens’ Bill McConnel are also running.
Surrey South is a relatively new riding made up of the former Surrey-Panorama riding and a part of the existing Surrey-Cloverdale riding. B.C. Liberal Stephanie Cadieux held Surrey-Panorama from its creation in 2009 and was re-elected in Surrey South after it was created in 2017 and again in 2020.
After Cadieux left the legislature to become Canada’s first Chief Accessibility Officer in 2022, Sturko won the riding in a byelection.
In 2024, Sturko ran and won in Surrey-Cloverdale, while controversial B.C. Conservative candidate Brent Chapman—the husband of former leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay—took Surrey South.
Chapman initially announced he was going to run with OneBC in this election, but dropped out of the race.
Chapman won the 2024 election handily, with a nearly 4,000-vote lead over the NDP candidate. In a historically right-leaning riding, the race between a party leader and current MLA in Sturko and a strong opponent in Knight will be an interesting one to watch.
Battleground: Richmond-Steveston
The Richmond-Steveston riding that borders the Strait of Georgia and Fraser River was a stronghold of the right-of-centre B.C. Liberal party for decades until the NDP’s Kelly Green flipped it in 2020.
Green won again in 2024 with 10,332 votes, just 484 more than the second-place Conservative challenger.
Her profile has since grown as B.C.’s emergency management minister—but Green is not seeking re-election. Could the riding swing right on Saturday?
Running in her stead is New Democrat candidate Bruce Kong, owner of a local autobody shop. He faces Gordon Zhang, a former Kwantlen Polytechnic University instructor and entrepreneur who established local N95 respirator production during the pandemic.
Representing the more moderate CentreBC party is Barry Wosk, a local businessman and director of the Richmond Chamber of Commerce.
Running as well are CanWest candidate Keenan Yang and Independent Robert Evans.
Battleground: Kelowna Centre
The NDP’s Loyal Wooldridge is challenging Conservative incumbent Kristina Loewen in Kelowna Centre, two years after Loewen defeated Wooldridge by just 40 votes.
In 2024, Green candidate Bryce Tippe and Independent Michael Humer took 3,724 votes combined, nearly 15 per cent of the total—though neither is running this year.
The third and final candidate is OneBC’s Bill Desrosiers, owner of a local autobody shop that was featured on the reality TV series Bush Wreck Rescue.
According to Elections B.C., only 25,750 of 45,642 registered voters cast their ballots in 2024, leaving room for significant change if the parties can energize the electorate.
Kelowna Centre was only formed in 2024, combining parts of Kelowna West, Kelowna-Lake Country, and Kelowna-Mission. Each of those was won by the right-of-centre B.C. Liberals in 2020.
Leader Profile: NDP’s David Eby
Years after David Eby and his wife met serving Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, the B.C. NDP leader says he remains an advocate, just one with new tools at his disposal.
“But the core of why I’m doing it—and that drive to represent the community that I’m charged with representing—is the same," he told our reporter Penny Daflos this week.
“But the core of why I’m doing it—and that drive to represent the community that I’m charged with representing—is the same," he told our reporter Penny Daflos this week.
Battleground: Vancouver-Langara
The Vancouver-Langara riding has historically elected B.C. Liberal candidates, but the riding flipped to the NDP in the previous election.
It was a close race, with the NDP’s Sunita Dhir beating the Conservative candidate by 419 votes in 2024. The B.C. Liberals’ Michael Lee’s victory in 2020 was wider, but not a landslide.
Prior to 2024, the riding had gone to the Liberals—then B.C.’s most popular right-of-centre party—in every election since its creation in 1989.
The Conservatives believe they have a strong candidate in Jamie Stein, the director for Western Canada at the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center, a Holocaust education organization.
He is up against incumbent Dhir, the parliamentary secretary for international credentials.
Also running are John K. Atoyebi for the Greens and Alan Beesley for CentreBC.
Battleground: Surrey–Guildford
As political scientist Hamish Telford said this week, all eyes will be on Surrey tonight because "that's where the swing voters are."
Perhaps no riding is more likely to be affected by swing voters' choices than Surrey–Guildford.
This riding was home to the closest race in the province in 2024, with New Democrat Garry Begg defeating Conservative candidate Honveer Singh Randhawa by only 22 votes.
This time around, the Conservatives are running Surrey Board of Education vice-chair Garry Thind, a local Realtor.
Small business owner Jodi Murphy is also running in Surrey–Guildford for the B.C. Greens.
Advance voting down this year
Polls are open until 8 p.m. local time today across B.C., but more than 890,000 people have already cast their ballots.
Elections B.C. reports that 891,348 people voted in advance this time around, down from 953,025 in 2024. That's a decrease of 61,677 votes, or roughly 6.5 per cent.
Battleground: Surrey–Panorama
B.C. Conservative incumbent Bryan Tepper is seeking re-election in this riding he won by just 263 votes in 2024.
He faces a familiar opponent in NDP candidate and former MLA Jinny Sims, who lost her bid for re-election last time around.
Tepper finished with 8,735 votes in 2024, compared with 8,472 for Sims. There was no Green candidate in that race, and only one other name on the ballot—Paramjit Rai from the Freedom Party of B.C.
This time around, two other candidates are also vying for the Surrey–Panorama seat: CentreBC’s Manav Manro and the B.C. Green Party’s Nolen Scott.
Historically, this riding has changed hands between the NDP and the largest right-of-centre party several times. This year, it looks set to be a key race once again.
“The common wisdom is that the election is going to be decided in Surrey—particularly in the central and northern areas of Surrey—because that’s where the swing voters are,” political analyst and University of the Fraser Valley Prof. Hamish Telford told CTV News earlier this week.
What are the parties promising?
During the campaign, the parties and their leaders pitched their plans for tackling some of the key issues facing the province and its people.
CTV News Vancouver kept track of key promises made in the lead-up to today’s election on issues including the economy, education, health care, housing and public safety.
Get caught up on what the Conservatives, Greens, and NDP pledge to do if they form the next government by reviewing our platform tracker.
How to vote
There’s still time to cast a ballot if you haven’t already. Unlike during advance voting, to vote on election day you must do so at your assigned polling station.
Your voting location will be on the voter card you received in the mail, or can be found on the Elections B.C. website. If you aren’t registered to vote, you can do so online, by phone or in person.
Polls are open until 8 p.m.
Read more: How to vote in the B.C. provincial election
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