Elections B.C. voter turnout estimate rises, but still a historic low

Elections B.C. has revised its estimated voter turnout for the provincialelectionin October, but the increased figure is still a historic low for the province.

While final figures won't be known until post-electionprocessing has been completed,ElectionsB.C.says more than 1.9 million voters cast their ballots.

The agency has increased its estimated turnout rate from 52.4 per cent to 54.5 per cent.

Despite that, it would still be a new low: statistics from ElectionsB.C.going back to 1928 show the lowest voter turnout was 55.14 per cent during the 2009election.

ElectionsB.C.says 724,279 voters requested vote-by-mail packages and more people cast their ballots in advanced polls and by mail than those who voted onelectionday, driven largely by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Preliminary data released byElectionsB.C.shows voting on electionday accounted for 28.8 per cent of the vote, compared to nearly two-thirds in 2017.