Municipalities worry a potential snap election could overshadow local elections this fall

As speculation mounts that Premier David Eby could call an early provincial election this fall, the Union of B.C. Municipalities is raising concerns that a provincial election could overshadow scheduled local government elections.

UBCM President Cori Ramsay said rumours about a possible provincial election have dominated many discussions at the union’s annual convention in Vancouver this week.

The rumours come amid recent favourable polling for the B.C. NDP, and as the Opposition B.C. Conservatives grapple with ongoing internal turmoil, including an exodus of nine MLAs from the caucus.

With municipal elections set for Oct. 17, Ramsay said overlapping campaigns could be confusing for voters and draw attention away from local issues.

“News feeds only have so much room. Newsrooms only have so much bandwidth. Overlapping elections will lead to less scrutiny, less accountability, and it’s not in the public interest,” said Ramsay, who is seeking re-election to Prince George city council.

“Local elections are held on a fixed date by provincial law. We call on the Premier to respect the law and respect the integrity of the local election process that only happens once every four years,” she said.

Eby earlier this week declined to confirm any planned election dates, but said his government is preparing for the possibility of an election.

“I do recognize that it’s important for British Columbians to be able to have a say about the direction of our province, given the incredible disruption that Donald Trump has brought to our economy and to our politics here in our province,” he said on Wednesday.

Eby noted his B.C. NDP has only a one-seat majority in the legislature, and also acknowledged the recent death of NDP MLA Joan Phillip.

Eby is scheduled to address the UBCM convention on Friday.