Liberals take five key Lower Mainland ridings

Last Updated: Wednesday, May 13, 2009 | 12:01 AM PT

CBC News

The B.C. Liberals have taken five key ridings in the Lower Mainland in B.C.'s 2009 provincial election.

In Chilliwack, B.C. Liberal John Les, the former solicitor general who resigned his post because of a suspicious land deal, won with just under 50 per cent of the vote.

B.C. New Democrat Mason Goulden trailed with just over 30 per cent, followed by B.C. Conservative Benjamin Belser with approximately 15 per cent and B.C. Green Fraea Bolding with about 10 per cent.

In Abbotsford-South, another former B.C. Liberal solicitor general has also taken a seat in B.C.'s legislature. John van Dongen, who resigned mid-campaign over his numerous speeding tickets, won over 60 per cent of the vote.

In North Vancouver-Lonsdale, former district mayor and current NDP candidate Janice Harris lost to Liberal candidate Naomi Yamamoto. Yamamoto took 50 per cent of the vote, while Harris polled 36 per cent of the vote; Green candidate Michelle Corcos received just under 10 per cent of the vote.

Burnaby-Lougheed, which was won by the Liberals in 2005 by just 372 votes, proved once again to be a tight race. Liberal candidate Harry Bloy squeaked by with 49 per cent of the vote, while NDP candidate Carole Dorothy Millar took 44 per cent of ballots. Green candidate Matthew Lair trailed with just 8.4 per cent of the vote.

B.C. New Democrat Bonnie Jasiver Rai followed with just under 25 per cent, the Green party's Daniel Stephen Bryce with under 10 per cent and B.C. Conservative Gurcharan Dhaliwal with just over five per cent.

In Surrey-Panorama, a riding created by a redistribution in 2008, B.C. Liberal Stephanie Cadieux led with about 60 per cent of the vote.

B.C. New Democrat Debbie Lawrence followed with about 40 per cent of the vote, followed by Green Murray Weisenberger with just under 10 per cent.

In Burnaby-North, Liberal Richard T. Lee won just under 50 per cent of the vote, with New Democrat Mondee Redman trailing close behind with just under 45 per cent. Green Doug Perry got just over seven per cent of the vote.

In 2005, Lee defeated New Democrat Pietro Calendino by just 65 votes.

In Surrey-Fleetwood, New Democrat Jagrup Brar took the lead in what was expected to be a tight race. He got just under 50 per cent of the vote.

Liberal Jagmohan Singh trailed with just under 40 per cent, while Green Christin Geall and Conservative Chamkaur Sandhu both got about five per cent of the vote.

B.C. Votes 2009

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Overall Results

Overall Election Results
Party	Elected	Leading	Total	Vote Share (%)
Updated: May. 13, 2009, 1:16 AM PDT
LIB	49	0	49	46.02
NDP	36	0	36	42.06
GRN	0	0	0	8.10
CON	0	0	0	2.11
OTH	0	0	0	1.72

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All results are unofficial until final ballot counts are verified by Elections B.C.

STV referendum overall results

Question: Which electoral system should British Columbia use to elect members to the provinical Legislative Assembly?

The existing system (First-Past-the-Post)
The single transferable vote electorial system (BC-STV) proposed by the Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform

Electoral District Vote

BC-STV

First-Past-the-Post

51 RIDINGS

Ridings 7/85

Ridings 78/85

Updated: May. 13, 2009, 1:16 AM PDT

85/85 ridings reporting

Total Popular Vote

BC-STV

First-Past-the-Post

MAJORITY 60%

560,430 votes | 38.82%

883,259 votes | 61.18%

Updated: May. 13, 2009, 1:16 AM PDT

What it needs to win:

For the referendum to be binding, the approval level must be:

more than 50% of the votes in at least 51 of the province's 85 electoral districts, AND
at least 60% of the total popular vote, province-wide.

If the two thresholds are met, government is required to introduce legislation to implement BC-STV in sufficient time for it to be in place for the May 2013 General Election.

B.C. Votes Headlines

Huntington defeats Oppal in B.C. election recount: Independent candidate Vicki Huntington has defeated high profile B.C. Liberal cabinet minister Wally Oppal in the riding of Delta South in one of two provincial election recounts concluded on Tuesday.
Oppal falls behind in see-saw Delta South recount: B.C. Liberal Wally Oppal fell behind in Monday's initial recount of ballots cast in Delta South in the May 12 provincial election. Absentee votes will still need to be counted Tuesday before the final result will be announced Wednesday.
Record low voter turnout in B.C. election: Voter turnout in B.C.'s provincial election hit a record low on Tuesday, with only 50 per cent of eligible voters bothering to vote, a full eight percentage points less than the 58 per cent that voted in 2005.
Oppal awaits results of recount for Delta South seat: There will be an automatic recount in the Delta South riding after preliminary election results show star Liberal candidate Wally Oppal beat independent Vicki Huntington by a mere two votes.
Re-elected Campbell to focus on strengthening B.C.'s economy: Gordon Campbell says reviving the province's economy is his main task as he heads into a historic third straight term as the province's premier, but other issues — such as health care and the environment — are also on the agenda.

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