Vancouver public safety plebiscite results will be released October 21
The City of Vancouver says it will publish the results of both plebiscite questions from election day on Wednesday, at the same time as the official vote count.
Reported. A news outlet found this. voche.me names the outlet and links its report. Read the original report on ctvnews.ca.
Voters who want to know what happened to the two public safety questions on the Vancouver ballot will have to wait until Wednesday. The City of Vancouver told CTV News on October 18, 2026, that plebiscite results will not be available until Wednesday, October 21, when the city also releases its official vote counts for mayor, council, park board, and school board.
A city spokesperson confirmed the timing to CTV News: "Confirming the plebiscite results will only be available on Wednesday, along with the official election results."
The two questions appeared on every Vancouver ballot on October 17, added by the outgoing ABC Vancouver council majority under Mayor Ken Sim. The first asked voters whether the city should strengthen its bylaws to prohibit open-air use of illegal hard drugs in public spaces. ABC Vancouver's plan, as described by CTV News, was to allow police to issue $0 tickets for public drug use, briefly detain the person, and seize their drugs without the heavier process of a criminal charge.
The second question asked voters whether Vancouver should formally request that the BC government add involuntary care beds within the city. The ballot language pointed to parts of the soon-to-be-vacated St. Paul's Hospital site downtown as one possible temporary location for those beds.
Unofficial results from election night and the following morning showed Pete Fry of the Green Party of Vancouver elected mayor, with Ken Sim second and Colleen Hardwick of TEAM for a Livable Vancouver third. No official counts, and no plebiscite tallies, have been published yet.
The City has said both sets of numbers will appear together on Wednesday. The official results page for the 2026 election is at results.vancouver.ca.
Voters who voted yes or no on either question can check results.vancouver.ca on Wednesday, October 21, 2026. This site will also report the plebiscite outcome when the city publishes it.
Questions this story answers
When will the Vancouver public safety plebiscite results be released?
The City of Vancouver confirmed to CTV News on October 18, 2026, that plebiscite results will be released Wednesday, October 21, 2026, at the same time as the official election results. The unofficial vote counts from election night did not include plebiscite tallies.
What were the two plebiscite questions on the Vancouver ballot?
The first question asked voters whether Vancouver should strengthen its bylaws to prohibit open-air use of illegal hard drugs in public. The second question asked whether Vancouver should formally ask the BC provincial government to add involuntary care beds within the city, with the soon-to-be-vacated St. Paul's Hospital site downtown suggested as a possible temporary location.
Who put the plebiscite questions on the ballot?
Both questions were placed on the ballot by the outgoing ABC Vancouver majority on city council, led by Mayor Ken Sim. The questions were part of ABC Vancouver's platform on public safety. CTV News reported this context on October 18, 2026.
Why are the plebiscite results taking longer than the election results?
The City of Vancouver said only that it would confirm plebiscite results on Wednesday, without giving a detailed reason. The unofficial election night results released on October 17 and 18 covered the races for mayor, council, park board, and school board, but not the plebiscite questions.
What would happen if voters approved the open-air drug use plebiscite?
According to CTV News's October 18 report, ABC Vancouver's proposal was to update municipal bylaws to allow police to issue $0 tickets to anyone caught using drugs in public, briefly detain the person, and seize their illegal substances without going through a criminal investigation. A vote in favour would not automatically change the law; it would direct the incoming council to pursue that bylaw change.
What would happen if voters approved the involuntary care plebiscite?
According to CTV News's October 18 report, a yes vote would direct Vancouver to formally ask the BC government to add involuntary care beds within the city. The second question pointed to parts of the St. Paul's Hospital site as one possible temporary location. The province would decide whether to act on the request.
Is Pete Fry in favour of the plebiscite questions?
The question was on the ballot before the election; candidates' positions were covered earlier in the campaign. The CTV News article of October 18, 2026, does not quote Pete Fry on whether he will act on a yes or no result. Voters can read previous coverage on this site for candidate positions.
Where can I see the plebiscite results when they are published?
The City of Vancouver is expected to publish plebiscite results on Wednesday, October 21, 2026, at the same time as the official election results. The official results are at results.vancouver.ca. This site will report the results when they are released.
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