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Victoria: New Democrat Laurel Collins with 10,000-vote lead

NDP candidate Laurel Collins was well ahead of Liberal Nikki Macdonald to be re-elected to a second term on Monday night. Preliminary results showed Collins more than 10,000 votes ahead of Macdonald with 228 of 234 polls reporting.
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Victoria NDP candidate Laurel Collins with four-month-old daughter, Alora Collins McNish, and partner James McNish on Monday, Sept. 20, 2021. DARREN STONE, TIMES COLONIST

NDP candidate Laurel Collins was well ahead of Liberal Nikki Macdonald to be re-elected to a second term on Monday night.

Preliminary results showed Collins more than 10,000 votes ahead of Macdonald with 228 of 234 polls reporting. Conservative Hannah Hodson was third, followed by Green candidate Nick Loughton.

However, there are still the mail-in ballots still be counted. The riding had the highest number of mail-in ballots requested in the country, with 12,294. Those will be opened Tuesday and verified before being counted.

Elections Canada has warned that results may not be known in some ridings until Friday.

Collins, 37, said she was “honoured” by the trust that the people of Victoria have placed in her.

“I spent the past two years fighting for this community, fighting for bold action on the climate crisis, real action on housing and reconciliation, and making sure the wealthiest pay their fair share, and I’m going to head back to Ottawa and keep up that fight,” she said Monday night from her home.

Collins was happy to see the Liberals returned with a projected minority government — and joined by a few more New Democrats.

“I think that when parties have to work across party lines, it makes for better policies and a stronger democracy and it is so important that we have people in there holding this government to account and really pushing them to make sure that we get supports for people who need it,” she said.