B.C. limbo: provincial election results in doubt for at least two more weeks
VANCOUVER — British Columbia’s election hangs in the balance with thousands of votes still to be counted, kicking off weeks of speculation and backroom negotiations with the newly influential Green party.
When preliminary results were tallied Tuesday night, Christy Clark’s Liberals had 43 seats, John Horgan’s NDP won 41 and Andrew Weaver’s Greens held a historic three ridings. The stunning outcome gave B.C. its first minority government in 65 years, with Weaver’s party holding the balance of power.
But the Liberals only need one more seat for a majority — and 176,000 absentee ballots are yet to be counted. Several ridings were decided by fewer than 300 votes, including Courtenay-Comox, where the NDP won by a mere nine votes.
The final results are expected by May 24, and it’s anyone’s guess what B.C.’s legislature will look like.