Elections BC has stated the minimum number of signatures needed by the anti-HST campaign in each B.C. riding. At the same time, it gave campaign leader Bill Vander Zalm a maximum spending limit.
A media release posted April 9 on the Elections BC website included the "signature thresholds" for all 85 ridings: "These numbers represent 10% of registered voters in each electoral district at the end of business April 6, 2010." The release also said:
The initiative petition expenses limit for proponent William Vander Zalm is $921,448.30. This amount is based on the total number of registered voters at the end of business April 6, 2010.
The totals of required signatures also reflect the variation in size of B.C. ridings. The North Coast anti-HST movement, for example, will need only 1,526 signatures to meet the threshold. Stikine will need 1,307; Peace River Valley, 1,703.
But 21 ridings will require over 4,000 signatures each, including Comox Valley (4,788); Kamloops-South Thompson (4,043); Kelowna-Lake Country (4,259); Kelowna-Mission (4,300); Langley (4,315); New Westminster (4,312); and Vernon-Monashee (4,521).
Crawford Kilian is a contributing editor of The Tyee.
What have we missed? What do you think? We want to know. Comment below. Keep in mind:
Do:
Do not: