B.C. election digest 2020: This week’s top stories

We are almost two weeks into the campaign and British Columbians head to the polls to vote in the election on Oct. 24.

However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this will be an election unlike any other.

Elections B.C. confirmed Friday it has already received about 494,000 requests for vote-by-mail packages.

Global News will have complete coverage of the campaign, including our full list of ridings and candidates.

A leaders’ debate has been scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 13, from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

The 90-minute event will feature BC NDP Leader John Horgan, BC Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson and BC Green Party Leader Sonia Furstenau.

The broadcast will be carried live by a consortium of radio and television stations, including on Global News, BC1, globalnews.ca, the Global BC Facebook page and AM980 CKNW.

CKNW host Mike Smyth looks at whether calling the election was a smart move in this commentary piece.

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In their first major promise of the campaign, the BC Liberals on Monday promised to eliminate the provincial sales tax for one year if elected on Oct. 24.

Wilkinson told a news conference the tax will then be reduced to three per cent the following year.

Horgan was asked at his own event whether he would also consider a PST cut. He said his platform will be coming out soon, and didn’t indicate what economic measures it will include.

Horgan started the week in Victoria, committing to cut health-care wait times by investing in four new MRI machines.

He was in Liberal territory Tuesday promising to complete two school construction projects if re-elected.

On Wednesday, Horgan announced his party would spend $1.4 billion over a 10-year period to get rid of shared rooms in long-term care facilities.

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BC Liberal candidate accused of elections fraud

All three of B.C.’s major political parties made commitments on the campaign trail on Thursday.

Horgan was in Vancouver to announce plans to expand the BC Access Grant for post-secondary students if re-elected.

Wilkinson released part of his much anticipated plan on community safety and tent cities, saying a BC Liberal government would work more closely with local officials to focus on restricting camping in urban parks, enforcing the ban on unsafe roadside panhandling, and exploring alternatives to mental health and substance calls.

In her first platform announcement, Furstenau pledged to shift away from a for-profit model in long-term care homes.

The Greens are promising to ensure taxpayers’ money is only supporting direct care for seniors, and to require annual inspections, financial statements and audited expense reports.

You can track where the leaders are going to be each day with our Global News leader tracker.

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