As the provincial election campaign got underway on April 16, Premier Christy Clark said: “British Columbia is at a crossroads, with two very different choices in front of us in this most important election in modern history.”
She might be right. Then again, in some electoral districts, a third choice is emerging, with the B.C. Green Party slowly moving up in approval ratings. Whichever way you lean politically, the coming election has more potential for change than we’ve seen in B.C. in a long time.
Not since 2001, when the New Democrats were decimated and left with only two seats after 10 years of ruling the province, have we seen this kind of potential for an ideological about-face.
But that takes votes. In the 2009 election, the highest participation level was in the age range of 65 to 74 (72 per cent of eligible voters). The lowest came from those ages of 18 to 24 (27 per cent). Overall, just 51 per cent of British Columbians eligible to vote took the time to do so.
In Greater Victoria, during the 2009 race, at least three districts saw fewer than 600 votes separate the winner and the runner up.
In Saanich North and the Islands, where Liberal MLA Murray Coell has since retired, the count was closest with a mere 245 votes separating him and current NDP candidate Gary Holman.
Does this mean Holman is a shoo-in this time around? Is Oak Bay-Gordon Head NDP candidate Jessica Van der Veen sitting on her laurels hoping she will just pick up those 561 votes she trailed Liberal MLA Ida Chong by in 2009? Not for a minute.
These candidates and their B.C. Green, B.C. Conservative, B.C. Liberal and independent counterparts are all working hard to get your support because they know every vote counts. Not only that, the youth vote could be the deciding factor on May 14.
Is this the most important election in modern history? You decide.