B.C. election on of the closest in provincial history

2024 was an election year in British Columbia, and it resulted in one of the closest votes in B.C. history.

On Oct. 19, incumbent premier and NDP Leader David Eby was reelected by the slimmest of majorities.

Eby faced a resurgent BC Conservative Party, led by ex-BC Liberal John Rustad, who just two years before was tossed from caucus for his views on climate change.

But with the rebranded BC United having folded up its tent in August, the Conservatives had become the only vehicle for right-of-centre voters.

Eby quickly made the campaign more about Rustad’s slate of candidates than his own government’s record.

Rustad, in turn, tapped into voter anxiety around affordability, public safety, and the toxic drug crisis.

Eby’s campaign moves — like abandoning the consumer carbon tax, walking back drug decriminalization, and endorsing involuntary car — delivered just the slimmest margins of victory: 47 seats to 44 for the BC Conservatives.

Now, armed with a Cooperation and Responsible Government Accord with the Greens, the NDP has stabilized its fragile majority.

But one need only look to the last time the NDP cut a deal with the Greens to see if this government lasts its full four-year term.