British Columbia’s Conservative Party has won a majority government for the first time in nearly a century, ending nine years of rule by the New Democratic Party (NDP) after a snap election on Saturday.
Provisional results showed the Conservatives winning 64 of the 93 seats in the provincial legislature, with the NDP taking 27 and the Greens two, according to results reported on Sunday. Conservative leader Lorne Doerkson is set to become the province’s next premier.
FAKTA
- Election: British Columbia provincial election, held Saturday, 24 October 2026
- Result: Conservatives 64 seats, NDP 27 seats, Greens 2 seats (provisional, 95 per cent of polls reporting)
- Historic first: First Conservative provincial election win in British Columbia since 1928
- Next premier: Conservative leader Lorne Doerkson
- Outgoing leader: NDP leader David Eby announced he would step down as party leader
- Key pledges: Double natural gas production by 2032 and more than triple it by 2035; end emissions limits; reach out to energy firms that left the province’s LNG sector
Historic win ends nine years of NDP rule
The result marks an end to nine years of power for the left-of-centre New Democrats, who had opposed new oil pipelines and supported a ban on tankers along the province’s northern coast. The Conservatives entered the campaign after months of internal conflict, but voters handed them a clear majority.
Doerkson pledges to “supercharge” the province
“I believe in energy… We will cut red tape like it’s never been cut before,” Doerkson said in his victory speech, promising to “supercharge” British Columbia. He also pledged to host a business summit in Vancouver next year.
The Conservatives promised to end emissions limits, replace the province’s carbon tax framework and reach out to energy providers that had left the province’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) sector since 2018, including ExxonMobil, Chevron and Woodside. Polls showed voters were focused on cost-of-living issues, healthcare and the ongoing trade dispute with the United States.
Eby steps down after early-election gamble backfires
NDP leader David Eby called the election two years early in a gamble to take advantage of a fractured opposition. In a sombre concession speech, he accepted responsibility for the outcome and announced he would step down as party leader.
“This is obviously something I do with a very heavy heart,” he told supporters at his party’s gathering in Vancouver. “But it is time for new leadership within our party.”
More on the region: America news on Watan News.
