Why a Provincial Canadian Vote Matters for Business

The aftermath of a dramatic election threatens political upheaval in British Columbia, the Canadian province that’s been driving the fastest-growing Group of Seven economy. A change in leadership could upend multi-billion-dollar energy projects, rattle sentiment in Canada’s most inflated housing market and complicate Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s fraught trade relations with the U.S.

The result of provincial voting on May 9 was about as close as it gets. Of the legislature’s 87 seats, 43 were won by the ruling center-right Liberal Party, 41 by the left-leaning New Democratic Party and a record three by the Green Party. Since no party has the required 44 seats to pass bills on its own, British Columbia will have its first minority government in 65 years.