Almost 24 hours after the closure of the municipal election polls in Lytton, B.C., uncertainty looms over the identity of the town’s next mayor due to a deadlocked race between the two contenders.
Denise O’Connor, the incumbent, and her opponent, former city council member Jennifer Thoss, each garnered 45 votes according to the preliminary results published by the Village of Lytton. These results are based on the ballot counts conducted at the polling stations but await confirmation by the chief election officer.
Shannon Story, Lytton’s chief election officer, is slated to announce the official results on Monday at 11 a.m. PCT.
Both O’Connor and Thoss refrained from providing comments at this stage of the process, although Thoss did express her surprise at the slim margin, stating, “I knew it would be close, but I didn’t think it would be this close.”
Following a devastating wildfire in 2021 that ravaged Lytton, prompting both candidates to run for office, the village’s population of around 210 residents was largely displaced.
In the event that the official results on Monday still reflect a tie, a judicial recount will be conducted, as mandated by B.C.’s Local Government Act. The recount must be finalized within 13 days of the general voting deadline. If the tie persists after the recount, the election procedures bylaw of Lytton stipulates that the deadlock must be broken by drawing lots, a method used in resolving ties in various B.C. municipalities in the past.
The Act outlines specific rules for the lot-drawing process, requiring candidate names to be written on identical pieces of paper, folded uniformly to conceal the names, and placed in a container for random selection.
Additionally, Lytton’s preliminary election results indicated that three incumbent councillors – Jessoa Lightfoot, Nonie McCann, and Melissa Michell – retained their positions, while Venkat Sajja secured the seat vacated by Thoss.