The first wave of results in the B.C. provincial election are expected to come in before 9 p.m.

Polls have closed in the B.C. provincial election.

The first results — electronically tabulated ballots from advance polls — are expected to be released before 9 p.m. Votes from Saturday will take a bit longer, as ballots cast on general election day are being tallied by hand.

We’ll update this story as results become available.

Langford-Highlands: NDP leading early on

With almost 8,700 advance ballots counted, New Democrat Ravi Parmar has a lead of almost 500 votes over Conservative Cindy Scott in Langford-Highlands.

The 2024 provincial elections saw Parmar become the first MLA for Langford-Highlands, a new riding for that election.

Parmar, who had won the Langford-Juan de Fuca seat in a 2023 byelection, captured 52 per cent of the vote — lower than both the 67 per cent he got in that byelection and the 69 per cent recorded by his predecessor, former premier John Horgan.

Previously the chair of the Sooke School Board, Parmar has been serving as the forestry minister. He will be facing off against a full roster of candidates in the 2026 election.

Running for CentreBC is Sean Flynn, an ex-officer in the Royal Canadian Navy and technical trainer for Lockheed Martin. Flynn almost ran in the 2024 election with B.C. United until the party collapsed.

Christian McCay, the leader of the Christian Heritage Party, will be running, as will the Green Party’s Christopher Moon, an administrator in the B.C. Wildfire Service.

Scott, who owns a homebuilding and renovation business, is the Conservative candidate.

Alex Thurlborn, a transportation worker who was born in Sooke, is running as an Independent.

Esquimalt-Colwood: First ballot boxes reported

The first results are coming out in Esquimalt-Colwood, with the NDP (2,706) more than 900 votes ahead of the Conservatives (1,773) and the Greens  (1,408) in third with five of 93 polls reporting.

While the Esquimalt-Colwood riding was new in the 2024 election, the region has historically been an NDP stronghold, and elected NDP candidate Darlene Rotchford won by a 22-percentage-point margin.

Rotchford, who was previously elected as an Esquimalt council member, has served in the NDP government as the parliamentary secretary for Armed Forces development and veterans affairs.

Running against her were three other candidates: the Green Party’s Sidney Coles, a journalist and environmental justice researcher; the Conservative Party’s Dave Johnston, a Canadian Ranger in the Canadian Armed Forces; and CentreBC’s Sid Tobias, the outgoing mayor of View Royal.

Nanaimo-Lantzville: First polls counted

Results are starting to come in in Nanaimo-Lantzville, showing the Conservatives and NDP separated by about 100 votes with about 5,700 ballots counted in four of 82 polling stations.

Nanaimo-Lantzville went orange in the newly formed riding’s first election. George Anderson, previously a lawyer and Nanaimo’s youngest city councillor, won the election, continuing the NDP’s dominance in the region.

Anderson is up for re-election against Kelsey Pringle, a marketing business-owner, for the Conservatives; Pepper Saltman, a food service worker, for the Communist Party; and Sharleen Weatherley, a high school teacher and former data scientist, for the Green Party.

Ladysmith-Oceanside: Tight race early on

Very early results have the NDP and Conservatives neck and neck in Ladysmith-Oceanside, separated by just 34 votes with two advance polls reported and just over 6,000 votes counted.

Ladysmith-Oceanside was a new riding in 2024, made up of parts of the former Parksville-Qualicum and Nanaimo-North Cowichan districts. Both of those went NDP in 2020, and Stephanie Higginson kept Ladysmith-Oceanside orange last election with a solid lead over the Conservative.

(For what it’s worth, Parksville-Qualicum was represented by Liberal MLAs for almost 25 years; Nanaimo-North Cowichan only ever had a New Democrat MLA in its 15 years of existence.)

A former secondary school teacher and president of the B.C. School Trustees’ Association, Higginson faces two opponents this time.

Kris McNichol, a businessman who ran for the Conservatives in the 2025 federal election, will be running for the Conservative Party of B.C. Charlene Smylie, a former mayor and councillor for Wabamun, Alta., will be running for the B.C. Green Party.

Mid Island-Pacific Rim: First Island ballots counted

The first results of the evening are in: One vote for the NDP and one for the Greens in Mid Island-Pacific Rim. We assume more results are coming.

Josie Osborne, the previous mayor of Tofino, will be running for the NDP again this election facing off against Conservative candidate Joshua Dahling and Green candidate Gracie MacDonald.

Osborne was first elected in 2020 with 58 per cent of the vote. She won again in 2024 by a strong margin, but it was the first time in six elections that support for the NDP dropped below 50 per cent in the riding.

Osborne served in five different folios for the NDP government, most recently as the Minister of Health.

Dahling has worked in logging and at alcohol and drug treatment facilities, and has lived experience with poverty, instability, homelessness and addiction. He lives in Port Alberni.

MacDonald is a former teacher and school principal and a former partner in Saanich Organics. She now lives on Denman Island.

Victoria-Swan Lake: Green says people disappointed with NDP

Greater Victoria Teachers’ Association president Carolyn Howe says she has felt disappointment with the NDP, despite the party’s history with labour movements.

Howe is running for the Greens in Victoria-Swan Lake and says “it’s time for something better.”

She says people had been waiting on the NDP government to act on issues such as public services but nothing has happened.

Speaking at the Greens election-night event, Howe says she is excited for how the Greens will do in the election and thinks the party will “have so much to celebrate.”

Howe faces incumbent New Democrat Nina Krieger and real estate professional Tim Taylor for the Conservatives.

Victoria-Swan Lake has been NDP since its creation in 2009, and 2024 was no different. Newcomer Krieger took over for long-time MLA Rob Fleming, holding the seat for the NDP with a 23-percentage-point lead.

Saanich North and the Islands: Outgoing MLA proud of Green campaign

Supporters have begun arriving at the B.C. Green Party’s election night event in the Greater Victoria area, including outgoing MLA Rob Botterell.

Botterell decided not to seek re-election in Saanich North and the Islands, clearing the way for Leader Emily Lowan to run.

He says he is proud of Lowan and the party’s campaign after NDP Leader David Eby called a snap election.

The outgoing MLA says people in his riding have told him they are “totally impressed” with Lowan’s poise and advocacy for Green causes, as well as her passion and vision.

Botterell won his seat in 2024 in a tight three-way race with the Conservatives and NDP. The riding was previously represented by Green Adam Olsen.

Also running this time are lawyer Kala Bryson for the NDP, retired immunologist Dr. Richard Smith for CentreBC, and outgoing Central Saanich Mayor Ryan Windsor for the Conservatives.

Courtenay-Comox

Courtenay-Comox has seen some tight races in recent years. Just 93 votes separated Conservative Brennan Day and the NDP incumbent in 2024. That followed a 189-vote New Democrat win over the Liberal candidate in 2017. (2020 gave the NDP a more comfortable 51% of the vote.)

Day, who left the Conservative Party when it was under Kerry-Lynne Findlay’s leadership this summer, rejoined the party for the election.

He faced three newcomers: two-term city councillor Will Cole-Hamilton running for the NDP, financial services professional Jason Cook with CentreBC, and public health professional Jay Van Oostdam with the Green Party.

Cowichan Valley

The Cowichan Valley riding got new boundaries in 2024 — and a new MLA.

In its previous version, the riding had been solidly Green for several elections, represented by former Green Party leader Sonia Furstenau. But Furstenau ran (and lost) elsewhere in 2024, and New Democrat Debra Toporowski won the seat with 40 per cent of the vote.

Toporowski, a former councillor for North Cowichan and the Cowichan Tribes, is running again.

Joining her in the race were Conservative Bert Chen, a small business owner; Communist candidate James Chumsa, an activist from Cowichan Valley; and Green Justin Douglas, a small business owner and community advocate.

Juan de Fuca-Malahat

Juan de Fuca-Malahat was a new riding in 2024, when the race was so close (20 votes) it triggered a recount. In the end, New Democrat Dana Lajeunesse won by 141 votes against his Conservative candidate.

Previously a two-term municipal councillor in Sooke, Lajeunesse served as the parliamentary secretary for accessibility in the NDP government.

He faced against four candidates, including Shane Friesen, a skilled trades worker and the Island’s only OneBC candidate.

David Evans, a small businessman, returns to the ballot after an unsuccessful run in the 2024 election.

Mike Hicks, who represented the Juan de Fuca Electoral Area at the Capital Regional District for 13 years, is running for the Conservative Party.

Jeff Brown, a business leader and accountant, is running for the Christian Heritage Party.

Nanaimo-Gabriola Island

First elected for the riding of Nanaimo in 2019, New Democrat Sheila Malcolmson was elected in the new riding of Nanaimo-Gabriola Island in 2024 with a lead of almost 20 percentage points.

A one-term federal NDP MP, she has since served provincially as minister of mental health and addictions, and most recently as the minister of social development and poverty reduction.

Malcolmson will be facing off against Conservative Mark MacDonald, a publisher and business writer, and Green candidate Anna Mary McKenzie, a Cree journalist and policy adviser.

North Island

In a seat-flipping 2024 election, the Conservatives took over the NDP stronghold of North Island by just 639 votes.

Anna Kindy served as the official opposition critic for health and is now the incumbent MLA for the riding.

Kindy will be facing off against RichaRd., Lambert, an electrician running as an Independent; Sara Lopez, a communications director for Habitat Humanity running for the NDP; and Benjamin Olsson, a social worker running for the Green Party.

Oak Bay-Gordon Head

Oak Bay-Gordon Head has been an NDP riding only since 2020, when former MP Murray Rankin became MLA. Before that, it was the longtime seat of former B.C. Green Party leader Andrew Weaver.

Weaver didn’t run in 2020, and Rankin didn’t run in 2024. His successor, New Democrat Diana Gibson, got 49 per cent of the vote in that race, finishing 20 percentage points ahead of her nearest competitor.

That was a strong finish, but not quite as strong as Weaver’s in 2020, when he got 52 per cent of the vote.

Weaver’s back this year, running for CentreBC.

So is Gibson, who has spent time as as the minister of citizens’ services and the minister for jobs, economic development and innovation.

They’re joined by Conservative Stan Sipos, a developer and co-founder of a carbon capture company, and Green Andrew Appleton, a renewable resources professional who has worked for the provincial government.

Saanich South

After five terms, NDP incumbent Lana Popham is not running for re-election. She won the seat in 2024 with almost 50 per cent of the vote (impressive, yes, but lower than the 56 per cent she got in 2020).

Vying for her place are three fresh candidates that you might recognize from elsewhere.

New Democrat Richard Zussman is a former TV journalist who used to cover B.C. politics before joining a public relations and communications firm

Cathie Ounsted, who is running for the Conservatives, served as chair of the Victoria Airport Authority and is a former Central Saanich councillor. She ran unsuccessfully in the federal riding of Saanich-Gulf Islands last year.

Green candidate Lisa Lapointe, meanwhile, is the former chief coroner of British Columbia. She was critical of the B.C. NDP government over the cabinet’s refusal to follow her recommendations to advance the safe supply of illicit drugs.

Victoria-Beacon Hill

Incumbent Grace Lore held down the NDP stronghold in the last election with a comfortable lead over the former Green Party leader Sonia Furstenau. The riding has been NDP since it was created in 1991, except for a B.C. Liberal term in 2001-2005.

Lore, an anti-violence advocate and former lecturer at the University of Victoria, has held many positions in the NDP government. She got 54 per cent of the vote in 2020, and 47 per cent in 2024.

She will be running against Green candidate Raj Sahota, a personal injury and human rights lawyer, and Independent Joachim Agou, a professional engineer.

— With files from The Canadian Press