Glossary

absentAlso: did not vote

Absent means the member did not vote in that division; the record does not say why.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 8 (Standing Order 16)

advance voting

Six days of voting late in the campaign, ahead of Final Voting Day, open to any voter at any advance voting place.Election Act, RSBC 1996 c. 106 s. 76

by-electionAlso: by-elections

An election in one electoral district on its own, to fill a seat that fell vacant between general elections.Constitution Act, RSBC 1996 c. 66 s. 35

casting voteAlso: casting votes

The vote the Speaker uses to settle a tie, the only vote a Speaker takes.Constitution Act, RSBC 1996 c. 66 s. 44

caucus

The private meeting of the members who sit under one party label, where they settle their position on what is coming up.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 3 s. 3.8

Committee of Supply

Every member but the Speaker, sitting as a committee to go through what each ministry proposes to spend.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 12 (Standing Order 60)

Committee of the WholeAlso: Committees of the Whole, committee stage

The whole Assembly sitting as one committee to go through a bill clause by clause, with every member free to question it and move amendments.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 11

committee sectionAlso: committee sections

A sitting of Section A or Section C, which takes part of the House into a committee room while the Chamber carries on.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 12 (sections of the Committee of Supply)

deferred divisionAlso: deferred divisions

A division put off to a fixed time later in the day, so the vote is taken then rather than when it was called.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 8 (Standing Order 16(4))

dissolutionAlso: dissolved

The end of a Parliament, which stops every item of business and sends the members to an election.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 10 s. 10.14

district electoral officeAlso: district electoral offices

The office Elections BC opens in each district for an election, where a voter can register, get a ballot or hand in a mail package.Elections BC: ways to vote

electoral districtAlso: electoral districts, riding, ridings

The area that elects one MLA, which Elections BC calls an electoral district and most people call a riding.Electoral Districts Act, SBC 2023 c. 15 s. 1

electoral quotientAlso: quotient

The provincial population divided by the number of districts, the figure a boundaries commission measures each district against.Electoral Boundaries Commission Act, RSBC 1996 c. 107 s. 9

Final Voting DayAlso: final voting day

The last day of voting in an election, when voting places are open from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m.Election Act, RSBC 1996 c. 106 s. 27

first reading

The introduction of a bill, where the Assembly decides only to take it up for debate later.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 10 s. 10.4

Lieutenant Governor

The Crown's representative in British Columbia, who calls and ends a Parliament and gives royal assent to bills.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 1 s. 1.3

minority government

A government whose own party holds fewer than half the seats and needs members from outside it to carry a vote.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 1 s. 1.4

MLAAlso: MLAs, Member of the Legislative Assembly

A Member of the Legislative Assembly, the one person each electoral district elects to sit for it in Victoria.Constitution Act, RSBC 1996 c. 66 s. 18

private memberAlso: private members, Private Member, Private Members

Any MLA who is not in Cabinet, whatever party they sit with.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 10 s. 10.2.2

prorogationAlso: prorogued

The end of a session, which clears the business waiting on the Order Paper without ending the Parliament.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 5 s. 5.3

recall

A petition by voters in one district to remove their MLA between elections, which needs more than 40 percent of those entitled to sign.Recall and Initiative Act, RSBC 1996 c. 398 Part 3

recorded divisionAlso: recorded divisions, division, divisions, formal division, formal divisions

A vote in the Legislative Assembly where the bells ring, every member in the room votes, and each name goes into the record.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 8 (Standing Order 16)

report stage

The short step where a bill comes back to the Assembly from committee, with or without the changes made there.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 10 s. 10.4

royal assent

The Lieutenant Governor's approval, which turns a bill the Assembly has passed into an Act of the province.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 10 s. 10.9

second reading

The stage where members debate whether they agree with a bill in principle, before anyone goes through it section by section.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 10 s. 10.4

solemn declaration

A statement of who you are and where you live, signed in front of an election official and carrying the weight of an oath.Elections BC: voter ID

Speaker

The member the Assembly elects to preside over it, who keeps order, stays out of debate and votes only to settle a tie.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 4

Standing OrdersAlso: Standing Order

The written rules of procedure the Assembly sets for itself and can change by its own vote.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 2 s. 2.4

supply

The Assembly's permission for the government to spend public money, which every provincial dollar needs before it can go out.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 12

third reading

The last vote a bill takes in the Chamber, after the committee work is finished.Parliamentary Practice in British Columbia, ch. 10 s. 10.4

Where to Vote cardAlso: Where to Vote cards, voter card, voter cards, voter information card

The card Elections BC mails to every registered voter once an election is called, naming the advance voting places in their district and their assigned place for Final Voting Day; any voting place in the province still takes their ballot.Elections BC: advance voting begins Thursday, October 10, 2024

writAlso: writs, writ of election, writs of election

The order that starts an election in a district and fixes the day voting ends.Election Act, RSBC 1996 c. 106 s. 26