Final figures released from Elections BC show incumbent Green MLA Adam Olsen won re-election with almost 52 per cent.
Olsen secured 17,897 votes, a share of 51.97 per cent of votes cast. Central Saanich councillor Zeb King won 9,990 votes, or 29.01 per cent. BC Liberal Stephen Roberts — the third and final candidate running in Saanich North and the Islands — won 6,547 votes, or 19.01 per cent of the vote, during his third run in as many elections.
Olsen first won the riding in 2017 with 14,775 votes, or 41.95 per cent of the total, ahead of New Democrat Gary Holman, who secured 10,764 votes, or 30.56 per cent. Roberts finished third with 26.46 per cent. Indepedent Jordan Templeman won 1.03 per cent.
With his re-election, Olsen becomes the first MLA since BC Liberal Murray Coell to win at least a second term. Coell first won the riding in 1996, then won re-election in 2001, 2005, and 2009 before announcing he would not seek re-election in 2013.
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That year, Holman became the first New Democrat to win the riding following its formation in 1990 with 33.27 per cent of the vote (10,515 votes), ahead of Roberts with 32.76 per cent (10,352 votes) and Olsen with 32.07 per cent (10,136 votes). Independent Scott McEachern won 1.9 per cent (599) votes.
Clive Tanner of the BC Liberals was the first candidate to win the riding in 1991 with 52.53 per cent, or 13,633 votes.
Olsen was one of two BC Green candidates who won their respective ridings. Party leader Sonia Furstenau retained the riding of Cowichan Valley, meaning that both Green incumbents will return to the provincial legislature, now dominated by the New Democrats, who secured 57 out of 87 seats. The BC Liberals won 28 seats.
It is not clear yet whether BC. Green Jeremy Valeriote will join Olsen and Furstenau as the riding of West Vancouver-Sea to Sky has become the object of a judicial recount after officials had completed the final count of absentee and mail-in ballots. It shows BC Liberal Jordan Sturdy with a lead of 41 votes. Initial projections showed Valeriote winning the riding.
A judicial recount must take place if, at the conclusion of final count, the difference between the top two candidates is less than 1/500 of total ballots. In West Vancouver-Sea to Sky, the threshold for a judicial recount is 49 votes.
The Supreme Court of British Columbia will conduct the re-count and set its timing.
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