British Columbia election on 24 October pits NDP against Conservatives

Who is running

David Eby

David Eby has been premier, the head of the provincial government, since 2022. He leads the New Democratic Party (NDP), which has governed British Columbia since 2017 and seeks a fourth term. He says he needs a strong mandate to answer the trade war started by United States President Donald Trump.

Lorne Doerkson

Lorne Doerkson is interim leader of the Conservative Party of British Columbia, the main opposition party, on the right. He has sat in the legislature since 2020 and says he intends to be premier if his party wins. He promises to repeal the province's Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act.

Emily Lowan

Emily Lowan leads the Green Party, which had two seats. Elenore Sturko leads CentreBC, a centre-right party formed by legislators who left the Conservatives. Dallas Brodie leads OneBC, which stands further to the right. Only the Conservatives nominated candidates in all 93 districts. On 8 October 2026 Doerkson dropped the one in Victoria-Beacon Hill, Joachim Agou, over posts on social media. Agou's name stays on the ballot.

How the vote works

Voters elect one member in each of 93 electoral districts under first-past-the-post: the candidate with the most votes wins the seat. The lieutenant-governor, who appoints the government, usually asks the leader of the party with the most seats to form one, and that leader becomes premier. A majority is 47 seats.

Polling places are open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Pacific time on 24 October. Advance voting runs from 16 to 21 October. Canadian citizens aged 18 or older who have lived in the province since 23 April 2026 may vote. There are 355 candidates. Municipal elections are held separately on 17 October.

How the race got here

The last election, in October 2024, gave the NDP 47 seats and the Conservatives 44. The next was due in 2028.

The Conservatives then split. Thirteen legislators resigned from the party's group in the legislature or were expelled in the less than four months that Kerry-Lynne Findlay led it, and several joined the new CentreBC. Findlay resigned on 20 September 2026. The party's board named Doerkson interim leader the next day, and he took back five legislators, among them former leader John Rustad.

On 22 September 2026 Eby asked Lieutenant-Governor Wendy Cocchia to dissolve the legislature, where the NDP held a one-seat majority. The same day seven of CentreBC's eight legislators rejoined the Conservatives, among them its leader, Peter Milobar. Sturko stayed and took over CentreBC.

What happens next

Eby, Doerkson and Lowan meet in a televised debate on 14 October 2026.

Elections BC, the body that runs the vote, says it will report preliminary results as soon as possible after the polls close. It plans the final count for 6 to 10 November. Return Day, when the results are formally returned, is 18 November 2026.