Are British Columbians headed to an early election in 2026?

As the new year begins, it’s the question quietly dominating B.C. politics, and one Premier David Eby will soon have to answer as he weighs whether to roll the dice on his fragile one-seat majority before the Opposition BC Conservatives reorganize under a new leader.

There are two scenarios, with two windows, for a B.C. election this year: a spring non-confidence vote or a summer snap call to the lieutenant governor.

The first involves Premier David Eby engineering the loss of a confidence vote in the house, on either his throne speech, budget or a bill he designates as so important it’s a matter of confidence.

This window runs Feb. 18 to May 28, when the legislature is scheduled to sit. It would catch the BC Conservatives at a moment of maximum organizational chaos, in the middle of a leadership race to replace John Rustad.

“We’ve been preparing to not only run a leadership race but we’re also doing election readiness,” BC Conservative executive director Angelo Isidorou told CTV on Monday. “So we’ll be ready.”

The Conservative race is expected to conclude in June.

Eby has denied he’s interested in striking the Conservatives when they’re leaderless. But he also........

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