BC election day is Saturday: guide for Tri-Cities voters

One week after choosing new mayors and councils, Tri-Cities voters head back to the polls on Saturday, October 24, for the 2026 B.C. provincial general election. It is the third election event in eight days for many local households, following the municipal vote on October 17 and six days of advance polls that closed Wednesday night.

If you are one of the roughly three in four registered voters who did not cast an advance ballot, Saturday is your day. Here is what to know before you go.

When and where to vote

Polls are open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday. In B.C. provincial elections you can vote at any voting place in the province, not just the one closest to home, so a voter who works outside the Tri-Cities can cast a ballot near work. Bring identification that proves your name and home address; a B.C. driver's licence works, and Elections BC lists many other accepted combinations on its website.

Not sure which riding you live in? Elections BC's website has a riding lookup by address, along with your assigned voting place, and its Where to Vote app shows district electoral offices and voting places near you on a map. Most of the Tri-Cities falls into four ridings: Coquitlam-Burke Mountain, Coquitlam-Maillardville, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody-Burquitlam, with a slice of southwest Coquitlam in New Westminster-Coquitlam.

Voting places across the Tri-Cities include schools, community centres, churches and campus buildings in all three cities. Because provincial and municipal voting places differ, check your assignment before you leave rather than returning to last Saturday's location by habit.

Note that your provincial voting place may differ from your municipal one, and the provincial ballot asks for a single choice: your local MLA.

What is at stake in the Tri-Cities

All four local seats are held by the BC NDP, and all four incumbents are running again. The race to watch is Coquitlam-Burke Mountain, where Jodie Wickens won by only 368 votes in 2024, the closest margin in the region. She faces Conservative Ryan Peterson, Green Valerie Morrison and CentreBC's Kaden Mann.

In Port Moody-Burquitlam, incumbent Rick Glumac is challenged by Conservative John McEwen and Green Wei Chou. CentreBC's Freddy Rawji suspended his campaign on October 20 to be with his grandmother in hospice care; his name remains on the ballot, and votes cast for him still count.

Port Coquitlam's Mike Farnworth, first elected in 1991, is the dean of the local delegation, facing Conservative Keenan Adams, Green Stephanie Hendy, Libertarian Lewis C. Dahlby and independent Lee-Ann Bates. In Coquitlam-Maillardville, incumbent Jennifer Blatherwick faces Conservative Matt Liang and Green Nicola Spurling.

Strong advance turnout

Advance voting ended Wednesday with 891,348 ballots cast province-wide, 23.8 per cent of registered voters, according to Elections BC's official tally. Locally, Port Moody-Burquitlam led with 10,588 advance votes, followed by Port Coquitlam at 10,497, Coquitlam-Burke Mountain at 9,881, Coquitlam-Maillardville at 9,611 and New Westminster-Coquitlam at 9,420.

The biggest single advance day was October 17, when 201,774 British Columbians voted on the same day as the municipal election.

Plan for a busy polling place

With advance turnout running at nearly a quarter of registered voters, election officials expect a steady stream rather than a single crush on Saturday. The busiest windows at Tri-Cities polling places are typically the hour after opening and the after-work surge from 5 p.m. to close. Mid-morning and mid-afternoon tend to move fastest. If you are in line at 8 p.m., you are still entitled to vote.

Workers are entitled to time off to vote if their schedule does not otherwise allow it, and every voting place is required to be accessible. Voters who need help marking a ballot can bring someone to assist them or ask election staff.

A campaign that ended as it began: quickly

This election was called on September 22, mid-municipal-campaign, in a snap move that frustrated local candidates and volunteers juggling two races at once. The result has been an unusual two-election autumn: new mayors in Coquitlam and Port Moody, a re-elected mayor in Port Coquitlam, and now a provincial vote that will decide whether the region's four NDP incumbents keep their seats.

One last campaign event tonight

Port Moody-Burquitlam's all-candidates meeting is scheduled for tonight, Thursday, October 22, at 6:15 p.m. at Old Orchard Hall in Port Moody, one of the last chances for voters in that riding to hear the candidates before Saturday. CentreBC's Freddy Rawji is not expected to attend after suspending his campaign this week.

When will we know who won

Elections BC posts preliminary results on election night after polls close at 8 p.m., updating riding by riding as ballots are counted. Close races may not be settled on the night. The final count, which includes remaining mail ballots, is scheduled for November 6 to 10, and tight ridings like Coquitlam-Burke Mountain could wait that long for a confirmed winner.

We will publish results for all four Tri-Cities ridings as they are confirmed. For candidate lists, see our Tri-Cities candidates guide; for the advance numbers, see our advance turnout report.