Polls now closed
It’s officially Election Day in B.C.’s 2020 provincial snap election.
First called in September by B.C. NDP Leader John Horgan, BC Votes 2020 is likely going to be one for the history books, already seeing a number of records broken when it comes to voter turnout.
Roughly 681,000 people cast their ballot during the seven days of advanced voting that ended Wednesday, compared to 614,389 in 2017.
Meanwhile, 478,900 returned vote-by-mail packages had been received by Elections BC by Oct. 22, representing 66 per cent of the packages requested.
It is expected that some ridings will see preliminary results as to which candidate will likely take a seat in the B.C. Legislature by the end of day Saturday. Meanwhile, close races will have to wait until mid-November for the winner to be declared, once mail-in ballots are counted by Elections BC officials after Nov. 6.
Haven’t voted? There’s still time. Here’s what you need to know:
Polling locations:
All voting locations will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Residents of Castlegar, Ootischenia, Blueberry — Castlegar Community Complex, 2101 6th Avenue.
Residents of Robson, Raspberry and Pass Creek — Robson Community Hall, 3067 Waldie Avenue, Robson.
Residents of Crescent Valley — Crescent Valley Community Hall, 1385 HWY 6, Crescent Valley.
Residents of Slocan — W.E. Graham Community School, 915 Harold Street, Slocan.
Residents of Slocan Park and Winlaw — Winlaw Elementary School, 5604 Winlaw Bridge Road.
Candidates running in the riding:
You can can learn more about the Kootenay West candidates by seeing how they replied to the questions below:
Q&A with Kootenay West candidates: schools
Q&A with Kootenay West candidates: economic opportunities
Q&A with Kootenay West candidates: Child care
Q&A with Kootenay West candidates: Opioid crisis
Q&A with Kootenay West candidates: Affordable housing
Q&A with Kootenay West candidates: life experience
Q&A with Kootenay West candidates: BC Parks
Voter registration:
While eligible voters don’t have to register ahead of time to take part in the election, Elections BC recommends British Columbians sign up ahead of time in order to avoid lengthy lineups.
Voters can register or update their information online at elections.bc.ca/ovr or by calling 1-800-661-8683. Registration closed on Sept. 26.
To be eligible, British Columbians must be able to show one of the following pieces of identification:
- A B.C. driver’s licence
- A B.C. Identification Card
- A B.C. Services Card, with photo
- A Certificate of Indian Status
- Another card issued by the B.C. government, or Canada, that shows your name, photo and address
Health rules for voting during COVID-19:
All voting places and district electoral offices will have protective measures in place, including:
- Physical distancing
- Capacity limits
- Election officials wearing personal protective equipment (such as masks and face-visors)
- Protective barriers
- Hand sanitizing stations
- Frequent cleaning of voting stations and frequently touched surfaces
- Election workers trained on safe workplace guidelines and pandemic protocols
Due to the pandemic, more British Columbians have decided to vote by mail-in ballot than ever before. Election results won’t be finalized until after Nov. 6., when those mail-in ballots are counted. An estimated 4111 number of mail-in ballots were requested by Elections BC within the Kootenay West riding. There are 33,192 registered voters in the region.
There are roughly 3.5 million registered voters in the province.
– with files from Ashley Wadhwani
