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The final count for the 2017 B.C. General Election began on Monday which means British Columbians are just two days away from knowing which party - or parties - will govern for the next four years.
However, how did we get to where we are today and why does the final count matter?
First, let’s recap.
On May 9th, Christy Clark’s B.C. Liberals secured 43 seats, followed by John Horgan’s New Democrats with 41 seats and Andrew Weaver’s Green Party with three.
Given these numbers, B.C. would have a hung parliament as no party has the 44 seats needed to form a majority. That being said, with three seats the B.C. Greens currently hold the balance of power, which means they could choose to go into coalition with either the Liberals or the New Democrats to form a majority government.
However, these numbers could easily change during the final count...
So what is the final count?
The final count is a count of absentee ballots for an election that were not considered at initial count. The final results of an election are determined at final count based on the votes accepted at initial count and final count.
In this election, the final count also includes the recounting of votes in two ridings: Courtenay-Comox and Vancouver-False Creek.
Okay, but why is the final count significant in this election?
The final count is significant in this election because particular ridings - like Courtenay-Comox - produced very narrow victories.
The Courtenay-Comox race, which may go down as one of the closest in provincial history, saw New Democrat Ronna-Rae Leonard narrowly defeat the Liberal candidate Jim Benninger by just 9 votes (10,058 to 10,049).
It’s possible that a recount could reveal different numbers than the initial count.
Also, the counting of absentee ballots in this riding could potentially hand victory to the Liberal candidate. This is because of the fact that Courtenay-Comox is home to a Canadian Forces Base (CFB Comox), where a significant number of people will be voting via absentee ballot and where the Liberal candidate Jim Benninger was a former base commander.
If Courtenay-Comox turns red, it will gift the Liberals the 44 seats they need to form a majority. In which case, the B.C. Greens would no longer wield the balance of power.
So there you have it, an incredibly tight race that has come down to the wire.
Keep up to date with the vote count by visiting Elections BC here and stay tuned for the final results that will be announced on May 24th.
For more information on the election, including explanations for particular terms, click here.
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