Every vote counts, we’re told on election days. Nowhere is that more true today than in the British Columbia riding of Courtenay-Comox, where the margin of victory came down to only nine votes.
NDP candidate Ronna-Rae Leonard won 10,058 votes in Tuesday’s election – just nine votes more than Liberal Jim Benninger, who earned 10,049.
With a margin that tight, a recount is all but certain and a full judicial recount may be needed as well -- leaving the province’s political future somewhat uncertain, for now.
“I said it was going to be a nail-biter, I said every vote was going to count and that’s exactly what we have here,” political consultant Michael Geoghegan told CTV News Channel Wednesday.
Leonard has been declared the winner of Courtenay-Comox, but if any one of the ridings declared for the NDP go to the Liberals instead, that could shift Liberal leader Christy Clark’s current minority into a thin majority.
According to Elections B.C. guidelines, a recount can be requested in any riding if the difference between the top two candidates is 100 votes or fewer. Recounts can be requested by a candidate’s official agent or simply ordered by the District Electoral Officer.
The recount is conducted by the District Electoral Officer during the final count, which is when absentee ballots are also added in. The final count isn’t expected until May 22 to 24.
If the difference between the two candidates is still less than 1/500 of the total ballots counted, the District Electoral Officer must then apply to the Supreme Court of B.C. for a judicial recount.
The B.C. Election Act does not specify the time by which a judicial recount must be completed.
Courtenay-Comox wasn’t the only close riding in Tuesday’s vote. Other ridings that may be facing recounts include Maple Ridge-Mission, where the NDP won with a margin of 120 votes. And in Coquitlam-Burke Mountain, the Liberals won by 170 votes.
There have only been four judicial recounts since the B.C Election Act came into force in 1995.
The most recent was in 2013, when results were contested in the riding of Coquitlam-Maillardville. In that case, the final result of the May 9 vote wasn’t known until almost a full month later, on June 7.
With the Green Party making history by picking up three seats Tuesday night, “this ain’t over yet,” Geoghegan said.
“When a third place party holds the balance of power, how they choose to exercise that power can have a profound impact on their subsequent electoral fortunes,” he said.
