Provincial campaign kicks into high gear in final days before the vote

VICTORIA (NEWS 1130) – Plenty of coffee is being poured ahead of a frantic few days on the provincial election campaign trail. It is the final weekend before British Columbians go to the polls and one political insider is pulling back the curtain on a critical time for candidates and their staff.

“At the constituency level, there are two big things that are happening,” explains Geoff Plant, a former Liberal MLA and BC attorney general. “The first is you try to find the people who you think are inclined to vote for you and the second thing is you organize yourself to do whatever you can on Election Day to make sure those people actually get out and vote.”

Campaign managers will then spend Tuesday blanketing the constituency. “They can call people they think will be voting and maybe offer them rides to the polling stations just to try to get out all the vote that they believe will actually support them,” Plant tells NEWS 1130.

At the central party offices, the focus is on battleground ridings and getting leaders out and visible in those communities. “They will organize a big rally, try to get people excited and try to connect with voters in the swing ridings where it’s too close to call,” he explains.

And Plant says all that effort leads to an electric atmosphere for candidates and staff. “Campaign managers are getting to the point where they are not getting much sleep and there’s lots of coffee being poured. The candidates are still probably out knocking on doors, smiling at folks on street corners while waving signs, trying to show their face and make sure people see that they are out there campaigning and being committed.”

Meanwhile, back at the office, Plant says a lot of midnight oil is being burned to ensure everything is in place for the last push on May 9th. “If you’re a candidate, you are trying to stay positive and trying to hang around people who are telling you that there’s a good chance of winning and that you need to keep your smile on. And there is work to do — you can get out there and persuade the undecided voters right up until the last minute,” he says. “I guess you’re hoping you have saved enough strength, energy and adrenalin for the last few, increasingly frantic days.”

And Plant has advice for the many new candidates enduring their first campaign. “It’s pretty exhilarating in the roller coaster sense of the term. My experience is that you’re involved in something that is bigger than you and creates its own energy. You probably don’t even know you’re running on empty because you’re just going for it. What you really hope is that this is the moment you realize you have the right team.”

And, he adds, that all the months spent organizing will pay off. “At this point it’s much more about organization than inspiration.”

Tune into NEWS 1130’s special coverage of Your Vote 2017 at 7 p.m. on May 9th, with a team of reporters across Metro Vancouver covering the issues important to you. We will also have up-to-the-second results on NEWS1130.com and on the NEWS 1130 app which is free to download.