BC leaders’ debate, Oct 14, 2026: by the numbers
Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson spoke for 28 minutes and 15 seconds at the Oct 14 BC leaders’ debate, more than either of the other two leaders.
Speaking time
The three leaders spoke for 74 minutes in all. BC NDP Leader David Eby spoke for 26 minutes and 1 second, and BC Green Leader Emily Lowan for 19 minutes and 45 seconds.
Eby spoke 5,554 words, at 213 a minute. Doerkson spoke 5,243 at 186 a minute and Lowan 3,083 at 156.
Moderator Shachi Kurl put eight individual questions to each leader.
In answers to her questions, including follow-ups and the seniors’ care question put to all three, Eby spoke for 11 minutes and 53 seconds, Doerkson for 12 minutes and 30 seconds and Lowan for 11 minutes and 47 seconds.
In open debate, Eby spoke for 13 minutes and 20 seconds, Doerkson for 14 minutes and 48 seconds and Lowan for 7 minutes and 3 seconds.
| Leader | Time and share | Words |
|---|---|---|
| Eby BC NDP | 26 min 1 s 35.2% | 5,554 213 a minute |
| Doerkson Conservative | 28 min 15 s 38.2% | 5,243 186 a minute |
| Lowan BC Green | 19 min 45 s 26.7% | 3,083 156 a minute |
| Leader | Questions | Open debate | Closing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eby | 11 min 53 s | 13 min 20 s | 49 s |
| Doerkson | 12 min 30 s | 14 min 48 s | 57 s |
| Lowan | 11 min 47 s | 7 min 3 s | 56 s |
Issues
Health care took the largest share of Eby’s speaking time, at 21.7 per cent. Jobs and the economy led for Doerkson, at 19.6 per cent, and government and budgets for Lowan, at 19.9 per cent.
| Leader | Issue | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Eby | Health care | 21.7% |
| Housing | 13.1% | |
| Government and budgets | 12.8% | |
| Doerkson | Jobs and the economy | 19.6% |
| Government and budgets | 19.4% | |
| Housing | 14.2% | |
| Lowan | Government and budgets | 19.9% |
| Housing | 19.4% | |
| Taxes | 12.4% |
Rivals named
Eby named Doerkson or the Conservatives 42 times and Lowan or the BC Greens six times.
Doerkson named Eby or the BC NDP 43 times and Lowan or the BC Greens five times.
Lowan named Eby or the BC NDP 15 times and Doerkson or the Conservatives five times.
| Leader | Named | Times |
|---|---|---|
| Eby | Doerkson or the Conservatives | 42 |
| Lowan or the BC Greens | 6 | |
| Doerkson | Eby or the BC NDP | 43 |
| Lowan or the BC Greens | 5 | |
| Lowan | Eby or the BC NDP | 15 |
| Doerkson or the Conservatives | 5 |
Direct questions
Eby put 10 direct questions to Doerkson, and Doerkson put 20 to Eby.
Lowan put 12: eight to Eby, three to Doerkson and one to both. Eby and Doerkson put none to Lowan.
| Leader | Put to | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| Eby | Doerkson | 10 |
| Lowan | 0 | |
| Doerkson | Eby | 20 |
| Lowan | 0 | |
| Lowan | Eby | 8 |
| Doerkson | 3 | |
| Eby and Doerkson together | 1 |
Starts within a second
On 75 occasions, a leader began a sentence less than 1 second after another leader finished.
Eby did so 29 times, Doerkson 39 times and Lowan seven times. Of the 75, 58 were between Eby and Doerkson.
How we counted
Times are seconds of speech in the CBC replay, from the first word of each sentence to its last, with pauses left out. Each leader sentence counts under one issue, and a rival counts as named at each use of a rival’s name, title or party. A direct question is a sentence ending in a question mark that a leader put to a rival on stage. Some 428 seconds of leader speech was assigned by turn order, the moderator’s cues or a short voice reading. A check by hand put about 1 in 20 of those sentences with the wrong speaker, which moves no leader’s total by more than about 10 seconds. The broadcast also carried recorded statements from CentreBC and OneBC, which are not counted here.
- About 65 seconds of speech, 1.5 per cent of the leaders’ total, could not be matched to a speaker.
- A sentence counts under the first issue it matches, so one on asking the wealthiest to pay more for seniors’ care counts as health care.
- A start less than 1 second after another leader stands in for cross talk and says nothing about who was at fault.