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Advance voting in B.C. election is down compared to 2024
Advance voting in B.C. down compared to 2024
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito
The number of ballots cast in the first three days of advance voting in the British Columbia election is down about 8 per cent compared to 2024.
Elections BC says there were about 440,000 votes cast from Friday to Sunday, compared to almost 480,000 for the first three days of advance voting last election, which set a record for total advance turnout.
Early voting continues at hundreds of places across the province today and tomorrow until 8 p.m. ahead of final voting day on Saturday.
There were more than one million advance ballots cast in 2024, a surge of 49 per cent compared to the previous election, and a report by the chief electoral officer says the process has been steadily increasing in popularity for two decades.
The report says almost half of all votes in 2024 were cast in advance, compared to about 20 per cent as recently as 2013.
The ballots cast in advance so far for the current election represent about 12 per cent of all registered voters.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 20, 2026.
Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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What’s next for Surrey now that McCallum is mayor again?
McCallum’s coalition holds seven of eight council seats, but major promises depend on funding.
On Saturday night, Doug McCallum won his fifth term as Surrey’s mayor. Not only did he win, but his Safe Surrey Coalition swept up seven of the eight councillor seats — meaning that McCallum will likely have almost no opposition when trying to pass things in city hall.
So, what happens next?
While Surrey residents made it clear they preferred McCallum’s platform over the other six mayoral candidates running, it’s worth returning to the party’s platform and seeing how likely some of their promises actually are.
The coalition vowed to bring a SkyTrain to Newton and build a new general hospital along King George Boulevavd. However, both of these projects would be the final decision of the province. While city hall could advocate for it, there is no guarantee the province will allocate the funds for it — the province is also facing an unprecedented deficit.
But other commitments are within McCallum’s jurisdiction to implement, like his promise to freeze property taxes for the next four years and waive business license fees for the first two years of every new business.
Property taxes go to several authorities like the provincial government, Metro Vancouver Regional District, TransLink and police services. The city uses their cut of the taxes to fund services like the fire department, road safety, parks and recreational centres, libraries, garbage pick-up and more.
According to the city’s website, Surrey already has one of the lowest property rates in Metro Vancouver. With inflation increasing the cost of labour and goods, it’s unclear how McCallum plans to fund all the city’s current operations without cutting anything.
Many of McCallum’s other commitments also hinge on the question of funding. The party has promised an expansion of policing services and securing a helicopter and drone fleet within 90 days for the SPS.
Going forward, McCallum has also committed to having all residential building permits approved within 60 days. If city hall misses this deadline, all permit fees will be waived. Surrey currently has a glut of unsold condos and some have questioned whether more housing is even the answer to lowering prices.
When it comes to recreation services, McCallum wants to build new pools in Clayton Heights, City Centre and add a pool into the Newton Community Centre being built. Again, it’s unknown how city hall would fund such large capital projects with a freeze on property taxes.
The party also wants to conduct a forensic audit of city hall’s land deals and “root out waste.” Locke faced backlash during her June announcement of a new $360 million arena — many questioned how much tax payers would be funding. Locke had previously said there was no way to cancel the project, even if a new party was elected.
Another pressing issue in city hall has been Surrey’s fraught relationship with Metro Vancouver Regional District. The regional district oversees core services in the Lower Mainland like delivering clean drinking water, treating waste and monitoring air quality, among other things.
But, the district has also faced criticism for the rising cost of the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant, with the top administrator exiting the organisation in early September.
While McCallum wants Surrey to withdraw from the regional district — remaining connected for utilities like water, sewer and waste — it’s unknown if he has the jurisdiction to do so. Or if McCallum does remove Surrey, if the district will allow the city to leave while still benefiting from their services.
McCallum will be sworn in on Nov. 2 and the first council meeting of the newly elected officials will be on Nov. 9.
Copyright 2026, Surrey Citizen. All rights reserved.
Aisha Chaudhry, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Surrey Citizen.
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Four stabbed, hospitalized in targeted gang attack in Vancouver nightclub: police
Four stabbed in targeted Vancouver attack
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Spencer Colby
Police say four people have been stabbed in an attack at a Vancouver nightclub over the weekend.
It happened Saturday inside a club on city's Granville Entertainment District at around 3 a.m.
Police say arriving officers found the four hurt and all were taken to hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
Witnesses say there was an altercation and three men who were patrons of the club were stabbed along with a male employee who tried to intervene.
Investigators say they believe it was a targeted attack that has links to the gang conflict in the Lower Mainland.
A suspect remains at large and is described as a black man about five feet 10 inches tall with dreadlocks and wearing a black puffy jacket.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2026.
Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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HEC Montréal offre des programmes accessibles et les possibilités sont nombreuses
Ça va bien au-delà de la gestion.
Poursuivre ton parcours universitaire demande une véritable réflexion sur le type de programme envisagé et surtout sur tes objectifs de carrière à court ou à long terme.
C'est la raison pour laquelle il demeure important de bien te renseigner avant de te lancer dans une nouvelle aventure académique.
Dans cette optique, HEC Montréal te propose de découvrir une foule de programmes qui s'adaptent à ta réalité et qui te permettent de concilier travail, études et vie personnelle. Les cours sont offerts en présentiel, en mode hybride ou 100 % en ligne.
De plus, en nouveauté dès septembre 2022, plusieurs de ces programmes seront aussi offerts dans le nouvel édifice au centre-ville!
HEC Montréal, école de gestion reconnue internationalement, te donne ainsi la possibilité de choisir parmi 19 D.E.S.S. (diplôme d'études supérieures spécialisées), trois maîtrises professionnelles et seize microprogrammes, dans tous les domaines de la gestion et menant à l'obtention d'un diplôme de 2e cycle.
Tu peux également opter pour l'un des 27 programmes de certificat proposés dans de nombreux domaines de gestion. Ils te permettent de décrocher un diplôme de 1er cycle.
HEC Montréal t’offre aussi 29 microprogrammes de 1er cycle, qui peuvent être complétés en cinq cours et qui mènent à une attestation.
Peu importe le sujet d'études qui te passionne, tu auras l'embarras du choix.
Marketing, finance, ressources humaines, opérations, systèmes d’information, management, comptabilité ou économie, il te suffit de sélectionner la matière qui correspond à tes aspirations.
Le D.E.S.S.
Sache que le D.E.S.S. est idéal si tu désires parfaire tes connaissances en gestion et améliorer rapidement tes conditions d'emploi.
Ce programme de 2e cycle s'avère très flexible, puisque tu peux suivre et compléter les dix cours à temps plein en moins d'un an ou à temps partiel, selon ton horaire.
Tu y vas donc à ton rythme et tu reçois une formation axée sur la pratique dispensée par des expert.es reconnu.es sur le marché. Un avantage considérable!
Si tu as un diplôme universitaire de 1er cycle en poche, le D.E.S.S. constitue une opportunité de te spécialiser et développer davantage tes habiletés professionnelles.
Ce diplôme ouvre de nombreuses possibilités sur le marché du travail : directeur.trice, gestionnaire en entrepreneuriat, chargé.e de projets en développement durable.
Le certificat
Pour orienter ta carrière vers de nouvelles avenues ou encore perfectionner tes compétences, le certificat pourrait bien répondre à tes objectifs.
C’est un diplôme de 1er cycle de 30 crédits. Tu es admissible si tu as : un DEC + deux ans d’expérience de travail, ou quatre ans d’expérience de travail à partir de 18 ans.
Le certificat offre une grande diversité dans tous les domaines de la gestion et plusieurs d’entre eux seront offerts au centre-ville dès l’automne.
Les avantages
Tu aimerais suivre tes cours le soir? C'est tout à fait possible. Tu préfères le jour ou la fin de semaine? Encore une fois, ce sont des options offertes.
N'hésite pas à consulter la Boussole sur les modes d’enseignement pour t’aider à faire un choix éclairé.
Déposer ta demande d'admission
Pour faciliter ton entrée sur le marché du travail, parfaire tes connaissances ou augmenter tes chances de décrocher le poste de tes rêves, opte pour le certificat qui répond à tes objectifs. Tu as jusqu'au 15 mai pour déposer ta demande d'admission.
Tu désires faire progresser ta carrière ou améliorer tes conditions d’emploi? Le D.E.S.S. est le choix tout indiqué. Le 15 avril est la date limite pour remettre ta demande d'admission.
Pour en apprendre davantage sur HEC Montréal et ses programmes, visite leur site Web, page Facebook, Instagram, YouTube ou Twitter.