Monday, October 22, 2018

Langley City Election Results: Higher Voter Turnout, Better Gender Parity

Langley City has historical had lower voter turnout for municipal elections than the provincial average. The municipal information site CivicInfo BC keeps track of current and historic election results of local governments in our province. The following chart shows voter turnout in Langley City over the last decade.

Voter turnout at Langley City municipal elections from 2008 to 2018. Select chart to enlarge.

It is encouraging to see that voter turnout is increasing in Langley City, and this weekend’s election had the highest voter turnout in recent memory. Unfortunately, our community’s voter turnout is still below the provincial average. I hope that the trend of higher voter turnout continues in Langley City as more people get engaged with their local government.

I’m a bit biased, but I believe that local government has the most direct impact on the lives of people. Because of that, we need to do more to get people engaged with local matters.

One of the major policy discussions at local government conventions provincially and federally is around ensuring that we give opportunity for all people to run for office. This is important because we should have governments that reflect our local populations.

Typically, men have had higher representation on councils than women. Langley City was no exception even though most of Langley City’s population is female. This weekend’s local election saw a majority-female council elected. This is good news as we have achieved gender equality.

Percentage of women on council in Langley City from 2008 to 2018. Select chart to enlarge.

To see the full results of this weekend’s election, please visit the Langley City election webpage.

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