EDITORIAL – We should be encouraged, not disappointed in election turnout

An editorial by Mel Rothenburger.

THERE’S DISAPPOINTMENT in some quarters in the turnout for Saturday’s (Oct. 17, 2026) Kamloops civic election. It had been expected there would be a larger turnout than in 2022 because of the high level of interest in issues including dysfunction around the council table.

Indeed, the turnout was 35.49 per cent, up from 30.42 per cent (or 29.01 per cent depending on the source) in 2022.

That’s at increase of about five per cent. It’s also an increase of 7,000 voters, and that’s hardly insignificant. On the other hand, there were 9,000 more eligible voters this time than there were four years ago.

Nevertheless, things are heading in the right direction. The real test will be whether the turnout remains at least as high, or increases again in four years’ time. Let’s hope it doesn’t drop back to 2022 levels.

One thing that seems confusing is the high turnout for advance polls this year, and it wasn’t reflected in what happened Saturday. Almost three thousand more people voted on advance polling days than they did in 2022. That raised expectations for the total turnout.

We must remember, though, that many more people are using advance polling days as a convenience rather than a necessity. At one time, advance voting was supposed to be used only if the voter was unable to vote on general voting day. For example, that person might be leaving for a trip out of the country, or have treatment scheduled for an illness, or any number of other reasons.

Now, though, advance voting is simply another opportunity to vote. Some people even voted in advance this year because they wanted to avoid what they expected to be long lineups on Saturday. And, indeed, those lineups did materialize at some polling stations.

At any rate, we shouldn’t tear our hair out over the turnout for this election. True, we have a long way to go to catch up to the 45 or 50 percent of a few decades ago. And we’re dreaming if we expect to reach the 60 or 65 per cent turnout of provincial and federal elections any time soon. But a lot of other B.C. municipalities saw significant increases in turnout, with several moving from the 20s up to around 40 per cent, so we know it’s possible to do better.

But let’s not focus on the numbers who didn’t vote, and be encouraged that there was an increase in those who did.

Mel Rothenburger is a former regular contributor to CFJC-TV and CBC radio, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, writes for the Kamloops Chronicle and is a recipient of the Jack Webster Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award, and was a Webster Foundation Commentator of the Year finalist. He has served as mayor of Kamloops, school board chair and TNRD director, and is a retired daily newspaper editor.  He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.