VANCOUVER — There was no clear winner in Saturday's British Columbia election, but the leader of the B.C. Conservatives says the province's political landscape has "changed forever," after his party pushed the incumbent New Democrats to the brink.
Neither party won enough seats to claim a majority, and vote counting was set to continue Sunday, with Premier David Eby's NDP in striking range of a minority government if he gets the co-operation of the Greens, who won two seats.
Potential recounts mean it could be next week before the winner is decided.
But the night belonged to triumphant Conservative Leader John Rustad, who told supporters in Vancouver that even if the NDP retained power he would "look at every single opportunity from day one" to bring them down and trigger a new election.
"This is what happens when you stand on values," said a beaming Rustad, whose party received less than two per cent of the vote four years ago.
Regardless of the final outcome, the days in the political wilderness are over for the Conservatives.
After an election day drenched by torrential rain across much of the province, the count ended around 1 a.m. Sunday with the Conservatives elected or leading in 45 seats, and the NDP in 46, both short of the 47-seat majority mark.
Elections BC said ballots cast by voters outside their district were still being tallied, while "election official availability and weather-related disruptions" were also delaying some preliminary results.
Nine out of 93 ridings were undecided, and in two of them, the Conservative and NDP candidates were separated by fewer than 100 votes.
Elections BC said recounts would take place in districts where the margin was 100 votes or fewer after the initial count. Recounts would take place on Oct. 26 to 28.
Rustad said his party had "not given up this fight" to form government.
"I am optimistic that people in this province are hungry for that change."
Eby said in a muted speech to supporters in Vancouver that he "absolutely" acknowledged Rustad "spoke to the frustrations of a lot of British Columbians" and vowed to "do better" if his party forms the next government.
He said that although the outcome was unclear, there had been a "clear majority" of votes for progressive values. "But we've got to do better," Eby said.
He said he was committed to working with Green Leader Sonia Furstenau, whose party could hold the balance of power.
Furstenau said her party was poised to play a "pivotal role" in the legislature.
The Green victories went to Rob Botterell in Saanich North and the Islands and Jeremy Valeriote in West Vancouver-Sea to Sky.
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.
Botterell, a retired lawyer, said it was an “exciting day” for him and he was “honoured” for the opportunity to serve his constituents.
"Tonight's a night for celebration," he said. "There will be lots of discussion over the upcoming weeks, but I am totally supportive of Sonia and I'm going do everything I can to support her and the path forward that she chooses to take because that's her decision."
Royal Roads professor David Black said the Greens retaining official party status after winning two seats could give them “some real bargaining power” in what is shaping up to be a very tight legislature.
“The Greens are going to be the kingmakers here whatever happens, if the race is as close as it is right now between two larger parties,” he said in an interview on election night.
B.C. Conservatives president Aisha Estey called her party's showing "the ultimate underdog story" and relished what she called a "historic campaign."
"Whether it's government tonight or official opposition, we're not going anywhere. There's a Conservative Party in B.C. now finally," she said. "We're back."
Rustad's unlikely rise came after he was thrown out of the Opposition, then known as the BC Liberals, joined the Conservatives as leader, and steered them to a level of popularity that led to the collapse of his old party, now called BC United — all in just two years.
Outgoing NDP MLA George Heyman, who did not run for re-election, said it was always "going to be a tight election."
"It's reminiscent of 2017," Heyman said, referring to the last B.C. election where no party reached majority. "The message is clear, people have been struggling. They're having a hard time."
The B.C. Conservatives set to enter the legislature include Brent Chapman in Surrey South, who had been heavily criticized during the campaign for an old social media post that called Palestinian children "inbred" and "time bombs."
A group of former BC United MLAs running as Independents were all defeated, with Karin Kirkpatrick, Dan Davies, Coralee Oakes and Tom Shypitka losing to Conservatives.
Most results came in quickly on Saturday night, as promised by Elections BC, with electronic vote tabulation being used provincewide for the first time. But the closeness of the race defied expectations of a quick call.
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.
It was a rain-soaked election day for many voters, who braved high winds and torrential downpours brought by an atmospheric river weather system.
Two voting sites in Cariboo-Chilcotin in the B.C. Interior and one in Maple Ridge in the Lower Mainland were closed due to power cuts, Elections BC said, while several sites in Kamloops, Langley and Port Moody, as well as on Hornby, Denman and Mayne islands, were temporarily shut but reopened by mid-afternoon.
— With files from Brenna Owen, Dirk Meissner, Brieanna Charlebois, Ashley Joannou and Darryl Greer
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2024.
Chuck Chiang, The Canadian Press