Vote by mail popularity still growing ahead of B.C. election

VICTORIA (NEWS 1130) – The number of British Columbians looking to cast their ballot by mail in this month’s provincial election continues to grow.

Elections BC says an estimated 646,000 people have requested a vote-by-mail package so far, a near 200 per cent increase from the 6,400 ballots cast by mail in 2017.

Update: we have now received about 646,000 requests for vote-by-mail packages in the 2020 Provincial Election. This number will be updated daily (Mon-Fri) on our website here: https://t.co/0ihiPxkbi8 https://t.co/qOVGHpTzQ3

— Elections BC (@ElectionsBC) October 9, 2020

Mail-in ballots need to be submitted no later than Oct. 17 for the vote to count. Elections BC has already cautioned that the winner and the party that will form government may not be known on election day, Oct. 24., because of the influx in mail-in votes.

Elections BC anticipates up to 35 per cent of votes cast this October will be mailed in. That’s up from the typical one per cent of votes normally cast by mail.

Related stories: 

• Will a vote for ‘Jon Hagen’ count for John Horgan? Probably, says Elections BC

• Higher mail-in ballots, early votes change campaign course in B.C. election: expert

COVID-19 is largely to blame for the increased popularity of mail-in ballots this election.

B.C. currently has more than three million eligible voters.

Head to our B.C. Votes 2020 page for all your election-related news in the lead up to Oct. 24.