British Columbians go to the polls on Saturday after a too-close-to-call campaign that saw David EbyB次元官网网址檚 New Democrats and John RustadB次元官网网址檚 B.C. Conservatives tangle over housing, health care and the overdose crisis B次元官网网址� as well as plastic straws and a billionaireB次元官网网址檚 billboards.

Forecasters say election day will be soaked in several parts of the province by heavy rain from an atmospheric river system.

But the campaign has already been drenched in negativity, with Eby and Rustad each devoted to telling British Columbians why they shouldnB次元官网网址檛 vote for the other.

The NDPB次元官网网址檚 election platform mentions Rustad more than 50 times, compared to only 29 times for Eby, while the B.C. Conservative platform names Eby 50 times, and Rustad only 11 times.

B次元官网网址淚 hope we never see another election like this,B次元官网网址� Eby said this week in Nanaimo, describing the tone of the campaign where he felt compelled to tell voters about controversial public statements made by Rustad and some of his candidates.

B次元官网网址淲e donB次元官网网址檛 call people who are gay B次元官网网址榞roomers,B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淲e donB次元官网网址檛 tell Indigenous people that what they experienced in residential schools wasnB次元官网网址檛 real. We donB次元官网网址檛 propose that health-care professionals be put in front of an international tribunal similar to the trial of the Nazis called Nuremberg 2.0.B次元官网网址�

Rustad, who campaigned in Nanaimo on the same day Eby visited the Vancouver Island city, said the NDP leader has consistently attempted to shift focus away from what he says are the real issues facing the province B次元官网网址� mismanagement of the economy, the crumbling health-care system and the ongoing drug overdose crisis that has resulted in more than 15,000 deaths since 2016.

B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 know why, I guess as premier he thinks itB次元官网网址檚 OK to be lying to the people of B.C.,B次元官网网址� said Rustad. B次元官网网址淭he premier of a province like B.C. should be able to be out, being straight up with people and telling them the truth as opposed to lies.B次元官网网址�

Regardless of the outcome, the election will go down as a sea change for B.C. politics, with the Conservatives poised to either form government or become the official opposition, after the implosion of the BC United party under Kevin Falcon, who halted his partyB次元官网网址檚 campaign to support Rustad and avoid centre-right vote splitting.

Polls have put the NDP and the B.C. Conservatives locked in a close battle. ItB次元官网网址檚 a remarkable turnaround for the Conservatives, who won less than two per cent of the vote in the last provincial election.

Eby and Rustad spent Friday making last-ditch pitches for support in vote-rich Metro Vancouver.

Eby started in Coquitlam, while B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad was scheduled to be in North Vancouver.

B次元官网网址淲e have left nothing on the table,B次元官网网址� said Eby, adding every vote will count Saturday. B次元官网网址淚 have really no regrets about the campaign.B次元官网网址�

On Friday, the Conservatives said that if elected they would launch B次元官网网址渁 full public inquiryB次元官网网址� into the use of taxpayer money to buy drugs on the dark web.

That is a reference to a so-called B次元官网网址渃ompassion clubB次元官网网址� that was operated by the Vancouver-based Drug User Liberation Front to buy drugs including methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin, test it for safety and then sell it to its members.

The club was ultimately shut down and the groupB次元官网网址檚 founders arrested and charged with trafficking.

B次元官网网址淭his inquiry will seek to uncover who knew what, when they knew it, and what actions were or werenB次元官网网址檛 taken by the New Democrats, including Premier David Eby,B次元官网网址� the party said in a statement.

Rustad was not available to reporters on Friday, but he was holding photo opportunities in Metro Vancouver.

Green Leader Sonia Furstenau was in Victoria, where she is looking to capture a seat in the NDP stronghold of Victoria-Beacon Hill. She has acknowledged the Greens wonB次元官网网址檛 win the overall election, but is hoping to retain a presence in the legislature where the party currently has two members.

The campaignB次元官网网址檚 only televised debate saw Furstenau tell voters that Eby and Rustad were more closely aligned than people may believe on issues including support for the fossil fuel industry and placing people with mental health and addiction issues into involuntary care.

The month-long campaign has featured regular controversies for the Conservatives surrounding past comments by Rustad and his candidates.

Rustad dropped several potential candidates before the start of the official campaigning period over extreme views posted on social media.

But during the campaign he continued to support Surrey-South candidate Brent Chapman, who called Palestinian children B次元官网网址渋nbredB次元官网网址� and B次元官网网址渢ime bombsB次元官网网址� in a 2015 Facebook post.

Rustad also stood by North Coast-Haida Gwaii candidate Chris Sankey, who suggested vaccines caused AIDS by posting about B次元官网网址淰accine Acquired Immunodeficiency SyndromeB次元官网网址� during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Then there was Vancouver billionaire Chip Wilson, co-founder of the Lululemon athletic clothing line.

Wilson injected himself into the campaign with a series of anti-NDP billboards outside his waterfront Vancouver home, located in EbyB次元官网网址檚 Vancouver-Point Grey riding.

Eby and the NDP embraced the moment, saying Eby was on the side of ordinary people in B.C. struggling to make ends meet and not the owner of a home assessed at more than $81 million.

Rustad said he supported entrepreneurs like Wilson, but they couldnB次元官网网址檛 expect a break on their property taxes.

RustadB次元官网网址檚 campaign promise to reverse a ban on plastic straws prompted Eby to begrudgingly agree that B次元官网网址減aper straws suck,B次元官网网址� but he suggested the B.C. Conservative leader was trying to stir up controversy by diverting attention from major issues facing the province.

Election day coincides with an atmospheric river system that is dumping heavy rain across much of the province.

Furstenau used the weather event to highlight her partyB次元官网网址檚 climate promises, saying the Greens are the only party that offers a serious response to the climate crisis.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 very interesting the timing of an atmospheric river arriving right on the moment of this election campaign, an election campaign where we have one party led by a climate denier and another party led by a climate delayer,B次元官网网址� she said.