FORT ST. JOHN -- New polling from Research Co. shows 16 per cent of decided voters in Northern BC would back Independent candidates, the highest proportion across the province's five regions.

“A lot of positive chatter out there that don't like seeing this polarizing politics and its great to see there's a choice out there in many of these ridings,” said Mike Bernier in an interview with CTV.

With the collapse of the BC United last month, five current MLAs have announced they will be running as Independents, most recently Karin Kirkpatrick for the riding of West Vancouver-Capilano, tightening the race in the upcoming election.

“We’ve never seen a political leader throw in the towel just weeks before an election was to be called, so we are in an unprecedented situation,” said University of Fraser Valley Political Science Professor Hamish Telford.

The five incumbents running as Independents not only make history, but it's rare that they get elected. It has never happened here in the Peace Region, with Vicki Huntington in Delta South from 2009 through 2017 the only one to achieve that feat in the past 75 years.

“When you don't have a party banner behind you-- tough to get attention in the media, running as an Independent,” said Telford.

But with strong name recognition as incumbents, and in the case of Mike Bernier in Peace River South and Dan Davies in Peace River North, multiple terms in office and records as cabinet ministers, there is a possibility they might just defy the odds.

“Incumbents running could literally hold the balance of power in the British Columbia legislature, giving us here in the Peace Region the biggest voice that we've ever had, probably in the history of us being a recognized riding in the province of British Columbia,” said Dan Davies in an interview with CJDC-TV.

Davies adds the voice of Independents would be powerful should they all be elected, filling the gaps for those left as ‘political orphans.’ The MLA ‘guaranteeing' shovels in the ground for a newly built Taylor Bridge in the next couple years.

To prevent a majority government, even B.C. Green Party Leader Sonia Furstenau is asking voters to consider Independents in ridings that can legitimately win.

“In a riding where you have an Independent who can be elected, I strongly encourage people elect that Independent MLA,” said Furstenau in a press conference.

Support for the Conservatives remains high at 42 per cent in Northern B.C. according to same poll by conducted between September 9 to 11, with the party being the choice of three-in-five voters who cast ballots for BC Liberal candidates in 2020.

In terms of leadership, the NDP and Conservatives currently remain neck and neck.

The two parties in a statistical tie with the survey finding 44 per cent of decided voters casting a ballot for David Eby's NDP if the election were held today, while 42 per cent would back John Rustad's Conservatives.

The survey was conducted among a representative sample of 802 adults in B.C. Research Co. said the data was statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

*With Files from Andrew Weichel, Robert Buffam, CTV News.