Elections BC

Non-partisan office in British Columbia, Canada

Elections BC

Agency overview
Formed| 1995
Jurisdiction| British Columbia
Headquarters| 100-1112 Fort Street, Victoria, British Columbia
Employees| 44 (permanent); up to 32,000 (election period)[1]
Annual budget| $8,961,000[1]
Agency executive|

* Anton Boegman, chief electoral officer

Website| elections.bc.ca

Elections BC (formally the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer of British Columbia) is a non-partisan office of the British Columbia legislature responsible for conducting provincial and local elections, by-elections, petitions, referendums, plebiscites in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Its federal equivalent is Elections Canada.

## Responsibilities

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Elections BC is a non-partisan office of the British Columbia Legislature responsible for conducting provincial and local elections, by-elections, petitions, referendums, plebiscites in British Columbia. Elections BC compiles and maintains a list of eligible voters as well as sets and adjusts the boundaries of electoral districts.[2]

Elections BC is also responsible for regulating campaign financing and advertising and the registration of political parties. To retain their official status, political parties must file annual financial reports with Elections BC.[2][3] Registration entitles parties to have their name on the ballot where they run candidates, issue tax receipts and spend on election campaigns.[4] As of 4 November 2015[update], 22 political parties are registered in British Columbia.[5]

In advance of elections, a district electoral officer (DEO) and a deputy district electoral officer (DDEO) represent Elections BC in each electoral district and establish a temporary office to conduct the election, often shortly before the writ of election is dropped by the government.

Elections BC is subject to the following legislation: Election Act (1996),[6] Financial Disclosure Act (1996),[7] Local Government Act (1996),[8] the Local Elections Campaign Financing Act (2014).,[9] and the Recall and Initiative Act (1996).[10]

## Scheduled election dates

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British Columbia was the first province to legislate fixed dates for elections. The next provincial election is set for October 19, 2024.

There have been instances where the province breaks from scheduled elections. On September 21, 2020, John Horgan called a snap election for October 24, 2020.[11]

## Referendums

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In 2015, Elections BC spent $5,372,380 to administer the 2015 Metro Vancouver Transportation and Transit Plebiscite, a cost of about $3.44 per voter.[12] A total of 1,572,861 voting packages were issued and 798,262 (51 per cent) returned to Elections BC. About 62 per cent of Metro Vancouver voters rejected a proposal for a half-per-cent sales tax increase to fund a 10-year, $7.5-billion upgrade to transportation by TransLink. About 290,000 voted yes, while 467,000 voted no. About 38,393 ballot packages received by deadline were rejected because they did not meet the requirements of the plebiscite.[13]

## Candidacy fees and requirements

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A candidate is required under the Election Act to gather the signatures of 75 valid voters in their electoral district. A nomination deposit of $250 per candidate is required. Candidates who receive 15 per cent of the total vote receive a full refund. All others forfeit the deposit.[14]

## Chief electoral officers

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Chief electoral officers forfeit their right to vote in elections they oversee. They may not be a member of a political party or contribute to candidate campaigns.[15]

The position of chief electoral officer was created in 1947. Prior to that time, the responsibility for overseeing elections had been assigned to the registrar of the Supreme Court from 1871 to 1899, then to the deputy provincial secretary from 1899 to 1940. In 1940, the position of registrar general of voters was created to take over some of the deputy provincial secretary's duties. In 1950, the chief electoral officer was also appointed registrar general of voters. The positions were subsequently held jointly until the position of registrar general of voters was abolished in 1995. In 1995, the chief electoral officer became an independent officer of the Legislature.[16]

### Current and previous officers

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List of chief electoral officers of British Columbia[17] Name  | In office

|

Frederick Harold Hurley  | April 1, 1947  | June 1, 1968
Kenneth Loudon Morton  | June 1, 1968  | October 1, 1979
Harry Morris Goldberg  | April 15, 1980  | May 2, 1990
Robert A. Patterson  | May 2, 1990  | June 6, 2002
Harry Neufeld  | November 7, 2002  | June 5, 2010
Keith Archer  | September 21, 2011  | May 1, 2018
Anton Boegman  | June 1, 2018  | Present

## Election expenses

[edit]

Election
Year  | Total
election expenses  | Electoral division
cost  | CEO office
cost  | Voter registration
cost  | Electors
on list  | Average cost / elector  | Turnout  | Percentage  | Sources

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

1996 | $15,574,526  | $8,891,749  | $5,186,654  | $1,496,123  | 2,227,424  | $6.99  | 1,592,655  | 71.5%  | [18]
2001 | $18,129,588  | $11,607,098  | $5,186,654  | $1,615,849  | 2,254,920  | $8  | 1,599,765  | 70.95%  | [19][20][21]
2005 | $22,909,644  | $13,624,872  | $9,284,772  | $3,244,918  | 2,845,284  | $8  | 1,774,269  | 58.19%  | [22][23][24]
2009 | $35,260,610  | $21,170,173  | $14,090,437  | $2,912,687  | 3,238,737  | $12  | 1,651,567  | 51%  | [25][26]
2013 | $34,808,125  | $22,874,036  | $11,934,089  | $5,982,981  | 3,116,626  | $10.96  | 1,813,912  | 57.1%  | [27]
2017 | $39,450,034  | $22,407,049  | $17,042,985  | $6,272,500  | 3,246,647  | $12.15  | 1,986,371  | 61.2%  | [28]
2020 | $51,603,932  | $29,400,057  | $22,203,875  | —  | 3,524,812  | $14.64  | 1,898,553  | 53.9%  | [29]

Note: Enumeration or voter registration expenses were included in total election expenses up to the 2001 election. As of 2005, Elections BC excluded enumeration expenses from its calculation of total election expenses.

### Candidates per election

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Election year  | Total candidates  | Electoral districts  | Political parties  | Registered constituency associations  | Sources

|
|
|
|
|

1991 | 317  | 75  | —  | —  | [30]
1996 | 513  | 75  | 18  | 142  | [30]
2001 | 456  | 79  | 28  | 205  | [31]
2005 | 412  | 79  | 45  | 163  | [32][33]
2009 | 345  | 85  | 32  | 128  | [34][35]
2013 | 376  | 85  | 26  | 159  | [27][36]
2017 | 371  | 87  | 28  | —  | [28]
2020 | 332  | 87  | 28  | —  | [29]

## References

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1. ^ a b Elections BC 2007-2008 Annual Report
2. ^ a b http://www.elections.bc.ca/index.php/about/what-we-do/ Elections BC What We Do web page. Accessed October 21, 2015.
3. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/index.php/about/ About Elections BC web page. Accessed October 21, 2015.
4. ^ "Election Act". www.bclaws.ca. Archived from the original on August 30, 2016. Retrieved May 6, 2025.
5. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/fin/Registered-Political-Parties-Information.pdf Registered Political Parties
6. ^ http://www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/96106_00 Election Act legislation
7. ^ "Financial Disclosure Act". www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca. Retrieved May 6, 2025.
8. ^ http://www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/LOC/complete/statreg/-- L --/Local Government Act [RSBC 1996] c. 323/00_Act/96323_04.xml#section42 Local Government Act, Part 3
9. ^ http://www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/14018 Local Elections Campaign Financing Act legislation
10. ^ "Table of Contents - Recall and Initiative Act".
11. ^ "British Columbians heading to the polls on October 24 in fall election". Global News. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
12. ^ Hui, Stephen (September 22, 2015). "Elections B.C. says transit referendum cost $5.4 million". The Georgia Straight. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
13. ^ Morton, Brian (September 22, 2015). "Elections BC to review rejection of more than 38,000 Transit Plebiscite ballots". The Vancouver Sun. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
14. ^ http://www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/LOC/complete/statreg/-- E --/Election Act [RSBC 1996] c. 106/00_Act/96106_05.xml#part5 Election Act, Part 5 - Candidates
15. ^ http://www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/LOC/complete/statreg/-- E --/Election Act [RSBC 1996] c. 106/00_Act/96106_02.xml#section5 Election Act - Election and Other Officials
16. ^ "The Chief Electoral Officer". April 30, 2008. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
17. ^ "The Chief Electoral Officer". Elections BC. April 30, 2008. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
18. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/1996-SOVGeneralElection.pdf General Election Report 1996
19. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/2001GEResults/2001-SOVGeneralElection.pdf General Election Results 2001
20. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/2001_arep.pdf Elections BC Annual Report 2001
21. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/ceofin2001.pdf Report of the Chief Electoral Officer on the 37th Provincial General Election
22. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/2005GEResults/SOV-GEcomplete.pdf Elections BC, Statement of Votes, 38th Provincial General Election, May 17, 2005
23. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/2005-CEOreportRefOnElectoralReform.pdf Report of the Chief Electoral Officer, 38th Provincial General Election, 2005 Referendum on Electoral Reform, May 17, 2005
24. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/2005-TargetedEnumeration.pdf Report of the Chief Electoral Officer, Targeted Enumeration and Voter Registration
25. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/2009GE/2009-GE-SOV.pdf Elections BC, Statement of Votes 39th Provincial General Election, May 12, 2009
26. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/2009EnumerationReport.pdf Elections BC, Report of the Chief Electoral Officer on the 2009 Enumeration
27. ^ a b http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/2013-General-Election-Report.pdf Elections BC, Report of the Chief Electoral Officer on the 40th Provincial General Election, May 14, 2013
28. ^ a b "2017 Provincial General Election - Report of the Chief Electoral Officer" (PDF). Elections BC. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
29. ^ a b "Report of the Chief Electoral Officer — 42nd Provincial General Election" (PDF). Elections BC. July 27, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 27, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
30. ^ a b http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/96_arep.pdf Elections BC 1995/1996 Annual Report
31. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/2001GEResults/2001-SOVGeneralElection.pdf Elections BC, Statement of Votes, 37th Provincial General Election, May 16, 2001
32. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/0405AnnualReport.pdf Elections BC Annual Report 2004/2005
33. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/news/n_050504.pdf BC Chief Electoral Office News Release, 2005 Provincial General Election Nomination of Candidates, May 4, 2005
34. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/index.php/news/2009-candidates Archived May 15, 2009, at the Wayback Machine Elections BC news release, Your Candidates for the 2009 Provincial General Election
35. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/0809-Annual-Report.pdf Elections BC Annual Report 2008/2009
36. ^ http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/AR1213SP1316.pdf Elections BC Annual Report 2012/2013

## External links

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* Official website

* v
* t
* e

Canadian electoral regulatory bodies

Federal|

* Elections Canada

Provincial|

* Alberta
* British Columbia
* Manitoba
* New Brunswick
* Newfoundland & Labrador
* Nova Scotia
* Ontario
* Prince Edward Island
* Quebec
* Saskatchewan

Territorial|

* Northwest Territories
* Nunavut
* Yukon

* v
* t
* e

Provincial political parties in British Columbia

Parties represented in the Legislative Assembly|

* New Democratic (47)
* Conservative (41)
* Green (2)
* OneBC (2)

Other parties recognized by Elections BC
that contested the 2024 election|

* Christian Heritage
* Communist
* Freedom
* Libertarian

Parties recognized by Elections BC
that did not contest the 2024 election|

* BC Strong
* BC United
* BC Vision
* CentreBC
* Party of Citizens

Historical parties that were represented
in the Legislative Assembly|

* Democratic Reform
* Federated Labour
* People's
* Progressive Democratic
* Provincial
* Reform
* Social Constructive
* Social Credit
* Social Democratic
* Socialist
* Unionist
* United

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