Final B.C. election results won't be known until at least Sunday, could be as late as Monday

Voting officials say recounts in two ridings that could determine the outcome of British Columbia's election won't start until Sunday afternoon.

The initial count after the Oct. 19 election ended with neither Premier David Eby's NDP nor the B.C. Conservatives led by John Rustad securing the 47 ridings needed for a majority.

A total of 11 ridings are considered too close to declare. The B.C. NDP has been declared winners in 40 and leading in six. The Conservative Party of B.C. has won 40 ridings and is leading in five. The B.C. Greens have two seats.

That means recounts, as well as the tabulation of mail-in ballots, could still hand either party a majority or place them in a situation where negotiating with the Greens would be crucial to forming government.

The election agency also says in a statement that screening of uncounted absentee and mail-in ballots has identified 65,000 votes provincewide that will also be tallied from Saturday until Monday, up from the previous estimate of 49,000.

It says in a news release that a partial manual recount will also take place in Kelowna Centre, as a result of a one-vote transcription discrepancy involving a single electronic tabulator, with the problem "likely due to election official error."

But the recount there will only involve votes that passed through the tabulator in question, and the lead held by the Conservative candidate is 148 votes, wider than the 23-vote lead held by the NDP in Juan de Fuca-Malahat and the 95 votes in Surrey City Centre.

"A ballot account is a form completed by election officials showing the number of ballots issued and the votes for each candidate, based on the tabulator results tape," the agency explained.

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Eby says all options are on the table as he tries to form a government after Saturday's nail-biter of an election. New Democrats are one seat short of a majority ahead of the final vote count. As Meera Bains reports, the NDP and Conservatives are both courting the Green Party.

"While the tabulator in question [in Kelowna Centre] passed all testing and produced results accurately, a recount of the ballots counted by that tabulator will be conducted as a result of the ballot account error."

If the NDP hangs on to one or both of Surrey City Centre and Juan De Fuca—Malahat, the party will be in a position to return to power in a minority government if it secures Green support, while if Conservatives flip both, they will have the numbers for a majority government. 

The Greens could also support a Conservative-led minority government, but there are wide ideological differences between the two parties.

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B.C. Green Party Leader Sonia Furstenau says she has spoken to B.C. NDP Leader David Eby ahead of a final vote count on the weekend. The B.C. NDP is just one seat shy of a majority after Saturday's election. Depending on the final vote tally, Eby could need the Greens’ help to form government. Meera Bains has more on that.

The recount in Kelowna Centre results from a request lodged by the NDP candidate, Loyal Woodridge.

"Recount requests in Courtenay-Comox, Maple Ridge East, Oak Bay-Gordon Head, and Surrey-Guildford did not meet the requirements ... and were declined," Elections B.C. says.

It says the tally of mail-in ballots in all districts will be updated on its website at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday and whenever a district's tally is complete. 

A small number of remaining absentee ballots, which Elections B.C. says represent about one per cent of the total of more than two million ballots cast, will be counted on Monday, with the results updated on its website hourly. 

"Because of B.C.'s vote anywhere model, electoral districts are counting results for multiple electoral districts. This means that voting results will not be finalized until every district has finished counting," it says.

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Conservative Leader John Rustad says he is gratified by the support that took the B.C. Conservatives from two per cent of the popular vote to more than 43 per cent, according to preliminary results.