The NDP have gained four additional seats in the B.C. Legislature since election night, but the votes are so close in the West Vancouver-Sea--to-Sky riding, that a judicial recount will be needed.
On election night, October 24, the results were strong enough to declare that the NDP had won a majority government, with 53 seats. The Liberals were declared winners in 27 seats and the Greens in two.
But several ridings were too close to call on election night, as there were an unprecedented number of mail-in ballots to count, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A total of 497,900 mail-in ballots were received, according to Elections BC. When absentee ballots were included, that meant more than 600,00 absentee and mail-in ballots still needed to be counted.
Now that those ballots have been counted, Elections BC confirms that the NDP won 57 seats. The Liberals gained one seat, bringing them up to 28.
Four ridings have flipped from the Liberals to the NDP: Abbotsford-Mission, Chilliwack-Kent, Richmond-South Centre and Vernon-Monashee.
On election night, it appeared Green candidate Jeremy Valeriote might take West Vancouver-Sea-to-Sky, to maintain the Greens' three seats in the B.C. Legislature. It was considered a major breakthrough for the Greens, since the party has been confined to Vancouver Island.
But after absentee and mail-in ballots were counted, the Liberal candidate for that riding, Jordan Sturdy, beat out Green candidate Jeremy Valeriote by just 41 votes (Sturdy 9,216; Valeriote 9,175).
The final count is so close that, by statute, it must go to the courts for a judicial recount. It's not known how long it will take for the BC Supreme Court to confirm the final count.
"The timing of the recount will be determined by the court," says Elections BC.
In a press conference Monday, Premier John Horgan said he hopes to select a new cabinet within two weeks, and recall the Legislature in December.
His government will be focused on the immediate crisis of a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"We have a strong mandate to make sure that we get through this pandemic safely and effectively, and that's going to be our commitment going forward," he said.
Asked if the one-time pandemic relief benefit promised during the election campaign will be in British Columbians' bank accounts before Christmas, Horgan said he couldn't make that promise.
Single British Columbians would be eligible for $500; families $1,000. Getting into people's hands depends on how quickly the BC Legilative Assembly can be reconvened.
"I can't guarantee that because I don't know what restrictions we'll have in terms of getting the Legislature back into place," Horgan said.
"I can't predict when in December or early January that will happen, but I can tell British Columbians that the commitment we made during the election campaign will be fulfilled in the next number of weeks."
