B.C. municipal elections: Early results lean toward defeat of incumbent mayors in Metro Vancouver
B.C. Votes: Municipal elections 2026
COMING UP
In 39 minutes
Voters in 161 B.C. municipalities go to the polls to elect their next mayor and council, school board and, in some cases, park board. Join hosts Lien Yeung and Stephen Quinn along with Jason D'Souza, Chris Walker and Justin McElroy for live coverage and analysis as results come in from from across the province.
The Latest
- Millions of British Columbians are choosing their next local governments today, with voting open in municipalities across the province.
- More than 3,500 candidates are running across 189 local bodies in B.C., including municipalities and regional districts.
- Heading into election day, local leaders were worried about confusion and low turnout given the provincial election takes place a week from today.
- Polls close provincewide at 8 p.m. local time.
Pinned
Where to find election results
CBC British Columbia has election special coverage starting at 8 p.m. PT, bringing you live results as polls close. You can follow updates through the following:
- Online: CBC Gem, YouTube and on this page.
- TV: CBC Television (check your local listings for the channel).
- Radio: CBC Radio One in Vancouver at 88.1 FM or listen online.
October 18
What does a local government do?
What municipalities can and can’t do in B.C.
September 29|
Duration
4:34
With municipal and provincial elections going on at the same time, it can be hard to know which promises being made at the local level are realistic, and which ones aren’t. The CBC’s Justin McElroy explains what powers cities actually have.
Many major funding and policy decisions sit with the province and its ministries.
But Kimberly Speers, who teaches public administration at UVic, says people can feel the impact of local government decisions every day.
"It's not generally seen as, you know, an exciting part of governing ... but at the same time, my gosh, are those local services so, so important," Speers said.
Municipalities like Vancouver tend to spend the most on protective services, such as police, fire, and emergency services.
Another big ticket item for municipalities is utilities like water, sewage and waste. Municipalities also oversee parks, recreation and culture centres and how land-use is determined — as well as maintaining sidewalks, roads and public transportation.
Multiple votes to cast in civic elections
Election overload is real in B.C. ahead of 2 back-to-back votes
October 16|
Duration
1:55
Election overload is real in B.C. with 2 back-to-back votes
Municipal political parties generally don't map neatly onto provincial parties across B.C., and depending on where you live, polling can include elections for bodies like school boards, as well as for mayor and council.
In Vancouver, for instance, residents are voting for one mayor, 10 city councillors, seven park board commissioners and nine school board trustees.
In provincial elections, on the other hand, voters simply choose one candidate to represent their riding in the legislature.
Record number of advance voters in some municipalities
A cyclist heading toward an advance voting station in Vancouver. (Nav Rahi/CBC) Vancouver is among many municipalities that saw a record number of residents make use of advance voting opportunities for this election.
The city says 103,000 voters cast a ballot over four advance voting days, smashing a record of 65,127 in 2022. Officials also say mail-in voting requests doubled compared to 2022, with 21,000 requests this year.
Surrey and Kelowna, among others, also saw high advance voter turnouts.
Every municipality was required to provide at least one advance voting day in B.C.
That's encouraging because, despite a local government's major impact on voters' lives — given they are usually responsible for day-to-day services like garbage collection, sewage and policing — voter turnout in B.C.'s civic elections are usually lower than provincial and federal elections.
In 2022, 29.2 per cent of eligible voters cast a ballot, well below the turnout for the subsequent provincial and federal elections, according to CivicInfoBC.
Where to find election results
CBC British Columbia has election special coverage starting at 8 p.m. PT, bringing you live results as polls close. You can follow updates through the following:
- Online: CBC Gem, YouTube and on this page.
- TV: CBC Television (check your local listings for the channel).
- Radio: CBC Radio One in Vancouver at 88.1 FM or listen online.
It's election night in British Columbia – the 1st of 2
A voting sign in Vancouver on Oct. 7. (Nav Rahi/CBC) British Columbians are choosing their next local representatives on councils, school boards and other regional posts on Saturday, the first of two election days this month.
The Union of B.C. Municipalities says more than 3,500 local government candidates are running across 189 local bodies in B.C., which include municipalities and regional districts.
CBC's Decision Desk will be closely following the vote count after polls close across most of the province at 8 p.m. local time, and will deliver projections of the results in some of B.C.'s biggest communities, including Kamloops, Kelowna, Richmond, Surrey, Vancouver and Victoria.
The overlapping provincial election had many worried about widespread voter confusion. Still, many cities and municipalities reported increased or even record turnout at advance polls, including Vancouver, Richmond, Burnaby, Kamloops, Surrey, Kelowna, Prince George, Cranbrook and View Royal.
Voters will cast their ballots again next Saturday for the provincial election.
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