VANCOUVER, B.C.: The No TransLink Tax campaign released new calculations today showing the TransLink Mayors have spent $11.35 per vote cast in the TransLink tax plebiscite. That’s $11.29 more than the No TransLink Tax campaign has spent.

Nearly 617,000 ballots have been sorted by Elections BC, more than the 532,205 cast in the 2014 municipal election.

The TransLink Mayors are spending $7 million in taxpayer money to run their YES campaign. That works out to $11.35 per vote.

The NO campaign, completely funded by donors giving voluntarily, is spending $40,000. That works out to 6.5 cents per vote cast thus far.

“Taxpayers should be disgusted to see their hard earned money wasted by TransLink and the mayors in this way,” said Jordan Bateman, No TransLink Tax spokesperson. “Even now, TransLink is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on spin doctors, robocalls and ads. TransLink seems determined to go out in this vote the way they came in – wasting taxpayer money.”

Bateman noted that only two days remain for individuals who have not received their ballots, or have misplaced them, to get a new one from Elections BC. Individuals can ask for a voting package at 1-800-661-8683 FREE or www.elections.bc.ca/ovr before May 15. Voting can proceed until May 29, but new ballots won’t be issued after the 15th.

Further, all ballots must be received by Elections BC by May 29 – it’s not enough to have them postmarked by that date. For that reason, the No TransLink Tax campaign is recommending that all NO votes be in the mail by the end of this week to give them ample time to get to Elections BC.

From mid-May on, NO voters should go to one of Elections BC’s nine plebiscite offices to ensure their vote is counted.

“It’s now or never,” said Bateman. “NO voters shouldn’t rely on anyone to defeat this tax hike for them – get that ballot in now.”