B.C. Conservatives Projected to Win Historic Majority as Doerkson Pledges to Double Gas Production by 2032

Lorne Doerkson will become British Columbia's next premier after leading the B.C. Conservatives to a majority government, CBC News projected on election night, a result The Narwhal also described as a historic Conservative majority that defeated David Eby's NDP. The win marks the first time since 1928 that a party running under the Conservative banner has formed a majority in the province, according to CBC News, and comes alongside a platform promise to double natural gas production by 2032 and cut permitting timelines for major projects. Counting was still under way as results were reported.

A Historic Majority Forged Out of Turmoil

As of 11 p.m. PT on election night, the Conservatives were leading or elected in 64 of B.C.'s 93 ridings, CBC News reported, with counting continuing. NDP Leader David Eby held his Vancouver-Point Grey seat but announced his resignation as party leader, telling supporters the loss "breaks my heart, and I accept full responsibility for that outcome," according to CBC News, which reported he had called Doerkson to concede and wish him the best. CBC also reported B.C. appears on track for a record low provincial turnout, with preliminary Elections B.C. results hovering around 45.5 per cent, below the previous record of 53.86 per cent set in 2020. The outcome caps a turbulent stretch for the party: CBC reported former leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay resigned amid a caucus revolt just five weeks earlier, and The Narwhal reported her 113-day leadership ended with her Sept. 20 resignation, by which point 13 MLAs had left or been removed from the BC Conservative caucus.

On energy, the Conservative platform promises to double B.C.'s LNG production by 2032 and triple it by 2035, according to The Canadian Press and The Narwhal, alongside a 120-day permitting law for major projects worth more than $250 million, repeal of the CleanBC climate plan and a rule cutting red tape back to 2017 levels by the end of a first term. In his victory speech, Doerkson pledged the doubling of natural gas production by 2032 plus faster permitting and mining exploration, saying "We will cut red tape like it's never been cut before," CBC News reported. The NDP countered during the campaign that those targets fall below the current pace of development, pointing to five LNG projects moving toward final investment decisions and "on track to more than triple production by 2035," The Globe and Mail reported. A University of British Columbia business professor told the Globe the production goal appears achievable partly through the Ksi Lisims project, which would export LNG to Asia from northwest B.C. and was expected to make a final investment decision later in the year, though he said further expansion is much less certain because Canadian LNG products are "late additions to an increasingly crowded marketplace" with cheaper competitors.

Accounts of the party's carbon policy differ. The Canadian Press reported the platform says existing mines and smelters would get competitive carbon costs, and that the BC NDP said during the campaign the platform dropped an earlier Conservative promise to scrap the industrial carbon tax; The Narwhal reported the Conservative energy platform pledges to get rid of the industrial carbon tax and replace it with new rules intended to keep B.C.'s gas exports competitive with the United States and Qatar. B.C.'s consumer carbon tax was already eliminated by the NDP government in April 2025, according to The Canadian Press. On taxes, the platform would raise the basic personal income tax exemption from $13,216 to $32,000 — a cut of about $1,000 for most workers, CP reported, with the party's plan saying the change would save the average family $2,000 a year — and Doerkson has pledged no new taxes for the party's entire time in government. B.C. faces a projected deficit of $13.8 billion, and the Conservative plan relies on a forecast of 3.2 per cent economic growth to shrink it, a forecast critics called optimistic, according to CP.

The Canadian Press reported that repealing B.C.'s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act is the party's top priority, listed in its plan alongside what it calls a path forward on economic reconciliation. None of the promises take effect on election night: tax changes and repeals need legislation or a budget after the new government is sworn in and the legislature sits, and as of 11:35 p.m. MT Saturday no swearing-in date had been announced, CP reported. Doerkson's own tenure is unsettled as well — The Narwhal reported the party's constitution bars interim leaders from running to become permanent leader, and changing that rule would require support from two-thirds of party members at an annual general or special general meeting.

Bottom line: The projected Conservative majority points to a shift in B.C. energy, tax and permitting policy, but interpretation of the reported facts suggests the practical timeline is open: the LNG, tax and DRIPA commitments are campaign pledges that still require legislation or budget measures after a cabinet is sworn in, and export growth also depends on private final investment decisions such as Ksi Lisims. The NDP and the Conservatives themselves have described the industrial carbon tax commitment differently, so that element remains unresolved in the reporting. This article is information only and is not investment advice.