Historic 28% Increase in Advance Voting Turnout for BC Election

October 18, 2024 TruthUSA

Record high advance voting numbers have been reached in British Columbia with 28 percent of the electorate already having cast a ballot in the 2024 provincial election.

Elections B.C. reports that 1,001,331 people have voted between Oct. 10 and 16, including 222,907 who voted on the final day.

On the first day of advanced polling, 171,381 eligible voters cast ballots. Subsequent days saw 155,464 votes on Oct. 11, 150,250 on Oct. 12, a decrease to 119,660 on Oct. 13, and a rise to 181,669 on Oct. 15.

The previous record was set in 2020 with 671,231 advance voting ballots, representing 19 percent of registered voters that year.

Certain ridings have already seen a turnout of over 30 percent, such as NDP leader David Eby’s Vancouver-Point Grey riding where 12,406 voters (36 percent) participated in early voting.

In Conservative Party leader John Rustad’s Nechako Lakes riding, 5,399 people (30 percent) voted early.

In the Victoria-Beacon Hill riding where Green Party leader Sonia Fursteanu is running, 15,992 voters (37 percent) participated in advanced polls.

Total voter turnout in 2020 was 53.9 percent, totaling 1,898,553 ballots cast.

“Although this was 86,021 votes less than the 2017 Provincial General Election with 1,986,374 ballots cast, it marked the second highest total for a provincial election in B.C.,” as stated in the Elections BC report for 2020.

Advanced polling turnout in 2017 was 30.2 percent, according to the report, with total voter turnout exceeding 60 percent for that election.

The provincial election day in B.C. is scheduled for Oct. 19.

The most recent survey from Leger indicates the BC NDP holds a four-point lead over the Conservatives, with 46 percent of voters planning to vote for the NDP. The Conservatives have 42 percent support, while the Greens are at 9 percent, as of the survey released on Oct. 18.

NDP support in the metro Vancouver region has increased from 42 percent to 49 percent over the past three weeks, according to the survey.

Conservative support stands at 49 percent outside of Metro Vancouver and Vancouver Island, according to Leger.

Advance voters aged 55 and older make up 49 percent of the total, with this group showing a preference for the NDP over the Conservatives (51 percent to 37 percent) per the Leger poll.

Leger notes that a smaller proportion of younger voters have cast early ballots—33 percent for those aged 35 to 54 and 23 percent for those aged 18 to 34.

Regarding Conservative support among men aged 35 to 54, Leger reports a rate of 47 percent. The survey also indicates a drop in Conservative support from the youth demographic to women last week, with a slight recovery leading up to election day.

The online survey included 1,017 B.C. residents and took place from Oct. 14 to 15.

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