11:39 p.m. Elections Canada result (final with 294 out of 294 polls reporting): Conservatives 29682 (52.1 per cent), NDP 20983 (36.9 per cent), Greens 3062 (5.4 per cent), Liberals 3020 (5.3 per cent), CHP 188 (.3 per cent).
11:21 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 29124 (52.1 per cent), NDP 20612 (36.9 per cent), Greens 3018 (5.4 per cent), Liberals 2934 (5.3 per cent), CHP 188 (.3 per cent). With 290 of 294 polls reporting.
Instant analysis:
Matt Morr, Green party member: "It's mixed emotions with a Harper majority. I'm disappointed about that and surprised the Conservatives won with such a majority. It's definitely a shift in power politics. I'm excited Elizabeth May is in the House of Commons… . .This might bring environmental and ecological values into decision-making."
Instant analysis:
David Norwell, Green party member from Vancouver Island: "It took a lot of work (to elect May). More than ever we need a Green party representative. There was a will for change. I had a really good sense she'd (May) get in. She's got a toe in the door. Let's she what she can do with it, although it's going to be hard with a Conservative government."
Instant analysis:
Gabrielle Price — Liberal supporter: "I think the campaign had a really great start to it. I think the Liberal party and Michael Ignatieff presented a great platform and it brought a number of great policies. I the election was necessary. The Conservatives were found in contempt of parliament and it was a necessary avenue to go down. Maybe Canadians didn't want to go to the polls but I think it was necessary. Obviously I'd like to see a Liberal government. I believe in Liberal policy and their philosophy and they embody what I believe in as a Canadian."
Instant analysis:
Cathy Madsen — Liberal supporter: "I'm surprised at the balance of the votes so far. I didn't expect it to go this way. With the NDP surge and the Bloc Quebecois going right out, that's surprising. I think the election as needed. I think we'd come to stalemate and something had to be decided. I think people realized there was going to be an election and we had to do our duty and vote. The party leaders made everyone in Canada mad. This is an election nobody wanted. I think Michael Ignatieff is too much of an intellectual to be a politician."
10:16 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 26935, NDP 18910, Greens 2804, Liberals 2727, CHP 168.
The mood at NDP headquarters:
The buoyant atmosphere at NDP candidate Michael Crawford's campaign office drooped when the local results came in and it was realized he wasn't going to win this one. But the music that provided the backdrop to the evening was upbeat throughout. Keyboard musician Cindy Friedman was joined by a bongo drummer and Latin singer, and the trio kept the salsa moving even as the bittersweet election results rolled in. Keeping it all in the family, Friedman is married to Tom Friedman, who ran for the NDP in the 2009 provincial election. Cindy Friedman is actually a biology instructor at Thompson Rivers University by day. But by night, she played a mean Latin beat.
Instant analysis:
Kayla Siracky, worker at the Michael Crawford NDP campaign: "I didn't know a lot about the political world. So I educated myself. I did the research. This has planted the seed that change can happen. The NDP has put a lot into propaganda and public relations and marketing."
Instant analysis:
Luc Peron, worker at the Michael Crawford NDP campaign: "I think the NDP catch up is great. I think people are frustrated with the Harper government. Never in a million years did I think the Liberals would get crushed by the NDP. (A picture of Jack Layton comes up on the TV screen) Look at that moustache of power."
9:42 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 25093, NDP 17731, Greens 2640, Liberals 2522, CHP 158. The Conservatives have 52.1 per cent of the vote.
Quotable:
Harry Lali, B.C. NDP MLA: "It's just taken 80 years to realize the NDP has something,"
Michael Fane, NDP party faithful: "People I know who have voted Liberal since they were kids have said they couldn't vote Liberal this time."
Ila Crawford, wife of Kamloops NDP candidate Michael Crawford: "It's historical for Canada. It's nice to be a part of it."
8:48 p.m.: Compared with results from 2008, the Conservatives are up by about four percentage points, the NDP is up by about three, the Liberals are down by about five and the Greens are down by about four.
8:45 p.m.: Ernie Cordonier, Murray Todd's campaign manager, said once it was all over that "the country had wanted to vote for the centre, they could have voted Liberal."
8:38 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 10901, NDP 8447, Liberals 1169, Greens 1145, CHP 58.
8:37 p.m.: A Daily News reporter calls the newsroom to find out what's going on locally as the Greens have no cable and wonder what's happening. Donovan Cavers and Todd are tied for third place with 5.3 per cent of the votes each.
8:34 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 50.6 per cent, NDP 38.4 per cent, Liberals 5.4 per cent, Greens 5.4 per cent, CHP .3 per cent.
8:28 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 8454, NDP 6231, Liberals 878, Greens 850, CHP 43.
8:25 p.m. NDP headquarters: Media outlets proclaim Cathy McLeod as the winner. Michael Crawford wants to check his own information before speaking to McLeod. "Layton came to Kamloops first time around because we're a priority riding, second time was just scheduling worked out really well. . . . He's always kept informed but he's always had an interest in B.C. and especially the interior."
8:21 p.m. Conservative headquarters: Instant analysis from campaign chairman Russ Cundari: "If you look at the numbers, it appears the Liberals are in retreat. There's very solid Harper support, and the NDP's over 100, which is more than anyone predicted. There's talk of the two merging. If that happens, you have a B.C. dynamic, a two-party system, so the choices for voters will become much more clear."
8:05 p.m. Conservative headquarters: CBC declares Cathy McLeod the winner. "Yay, CBC" "Get the champagne."
8:06 p.m. Conservative headquarters: Mayor Peter Milobar arrives.
8:07 p.m Elections Canada result: Conservatives 4252, NDP 2693, Liberals 398, Greens 359, CHP 14.
8:04 p.m. Conservative headquarters: "Ignatieff is reported to be behind in his riding," said Sen. Nancy Greene Raine. The Bloc is down, she noted, "good riddance."
8:02 p.m. Green Party party: Mixed emotions: fear and loathing at the prospect of a Conservative majority along with excitement as Green Party Leader Elizabeth May leads in early polling in her riding.
7:57 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 2215, NDP 1319, Liberals 218, Greens 160, CHP seven.
7:53 p.m. Liberal HQ: When Peter Mansbridge announced a Conservative majority, a collective groan was heard in Liberal headquarters. Then it was very quiet.
7:48 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 702, NDP 415, Liberals 71, Greens 51, CHP one.
7:45 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 555, NDP 349, Liberals 51, Greens 41, CHP one.
7:41 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 234, NDP 180, Liberals 21, Greens 17.
7:38 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 98, NDP 69, Liberals five, Greens four.
7:35 p.m. Liberal HQ: Murray Todd, having watched results coming in nationally with his party coming in third, said he was "very, very surprised — not what we were looking for." But at this point he is still confident he can win the riding.
7:31 p.m. Elections Canada result: Conservatives 83, NDP 59, Liberals five, Greens two.
7:28 p.m. Green HQ: Green members were on social media sites already discussing results — nothing promising for the party — 10 minutes before the blackout is over in B.C.
7:24 p.m. NDP headquarters: All eyes are on the TV set watching the federal election results at NDP candidate Michael Crawford's camp, with a couple young men of the 30 to 40 gathered chewing their nails. Crawford has not arrived yet but Fraser-Nicola NDP MLA Harry Lali is in attendance. A small band is set up in the corner but the bongo drums have yet to break out.
7:21 p.m. Conservative headquarters: I'm waiting for the good news. I don't know, it might be pretty close in this riding. I think Harper's done a fine job with the country, so why change? They have to change the whole infrastructure, and with a war on? That's going to cost the taxpayers quite a lot, too. I hope people remember that it was the other parties that brought the election on. There seems to be a consensus of opinion Harper's going to win. — Rob Irvin, Conservative supporter
