The polls have officially closed 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.
In the Columbia River Revelstoke riding 6,662 people voted in the advanced polls between Oct. 15 and Oct. 21, out of 26,166 registered voters.
There were 3,019 vote-by-mail packages issued in the riding as well.
As of Oct. 22, Elections BC has received 478,900 returned vote-by-mail packages, 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:
The polling station was open today from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. located at the Revelstoke Community Centre at 600 Campbell Ave. Completed mail-in ballots can also be dropped off at Service BC at Room 104, Court House, 1123 Second Street West.
Candidates running in the riding:
Samson Boyer is running for the BC Green Party.
READ MORE: BC VOTES: Columbia River-Revelstoke Green Party candidate is Fairmont’s Samson Boyer
READ MORE: BC VOTES: Q&A with BC Green Party candidate Samson Boyer
Nicole Cherlet, a Revelstoke City Councillor, is running for the BC NDP.
READ MORE: BC VOTES: Revelstoke city councillor vying for Columbia River Revelstoke seat
READ MORE: BC VOTES: Q&A with BC NDP candidate Nicole Cherlet
The incumbent is Doug Clovechok, who is running for the BC Liberals.
READ MORE: BC VOTES: Clovechok is running on his record
READ MORE: BC VOTES: Get to know BC Liberal candidate Doug Clovechok
Voter registration:
While eligible voters don’t have to register ahead of time to take part in the election.
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
– with files from Ashley Wadhwani