It's general voting day for the Area C by-election being held for rural residents around Fort St. John.
The electoral area includes the communities of Charlie Lake, Old Fort, Baldonnel, Grandhaven, Clairmont, and Two Rivers, where residents will be voting on a director to represent them on the board of the Peace River Regional District.
Poll stations are open until 8 p.m. at Charlie Lake and Baldonnel schools.
The by-election is a do-over of October’s general election, the results of which were overturned by the B.C. Supreme Court when it was discovered voters outside the electoral area were given ballots despite being ineligible to vote.
Final results of the Oct. 15 election showed Suzanne Haab, a political newcomer, winning with just a three-vote edge over the incumbent Brad Sperling, 234 to 231.
The concern with the narrow margin was whether the actual number of ineligible votes cast impacted the margin, and to what degree.
As a result, the Supreme Court ruled the results couldn't be validated, meaning the position of Area C director was vacant.
Haab and Sperling were the only two candidates to file their nominations for this month's by-election, and 232 votes were cast in advance polls on Feb. 15 and 22.
The PRRD says preliminary results for the by-election will be released after 8 p.m. tonight, with final results posted Tuesday, Feb. 28.
