NDP Harry Lali served as MLA for the Yale-Lillooet riding (local riding) from 1991 to 2001, then from 2005 to 2009 and again in the Fraser-Nicola riding (newly created local riding) from 2009 to 2013.
Preliminary voting results from election day, May 14 of this year show BC Liberal Jackie Tegart with the win at 5,539 votes to incumbent NDP Harry Lali with 4,785 votes in the Fraser-Nicola riding.
“NDP voters stayed home,” said Lali. According to past voter support tracking approximately 3200 NDP voters stayed home he said.
Complacency and the belief of voters who thought Lali was a “shoo-in” thinking he just couldn’t lose—may just have kept voters at home.
“This happened province wide as well,” said Lali.
In the early polls, the NDP was the lead province-wide, but in the end voter turnout was low. According to information from BC Elections, only 1,692,502 of the registered 3,116,626 B.C. voters cast their ballots. (Preliminary results)
Lali extends his congratulations to Tegart and “wishes her well.”
“I will be back in four years,” he said, “the Liberals got a freebie—this time.”
Final results of the 2013 Election will be known by Wednesday, May 29.
