Some dissident MLAs are rejoining the BC Conservatives as the province’s Opposition attempts to bolster its ranks ahead of a possible snap election and just a day after its leader resigned.
asserted
leader → rejoin → election
Kerry-Lynne Findlay’s announcement Sunday that she was stepping down as leader because of “infighting” prompted the return of some party members who had left the caucus over her leadership.
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who → step → leadership
On Monday, the party announced that Scott McInnis, Trevor Halford, Claire Rattée, John Rustad and Linda Hepner are once again Conservatives.
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McInnis → announce → Monday
Speculation that NDP Premier David Eby would call an election two years early dramatically ramped up last week.
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Eby → call → election
Mr. Eby has said he has warned Elections BC and his caucus to be “election ready” amid disruptions posed by the U.S. trade war.
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he → say → war
His government has made a flurry of announcements in recent days, including last week pausing an expansion to the provincial sales tax and on Monday reversing an earlier halt to long-promised expanded services at Burnaby Hospital.
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government → make → Hospital
On Monday, Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim urged the NDP government not to call an early vote until after provincewide municipal elections on Oct. 17, which he said deserve the “full, undivided attention” of residents.
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he → urge → residents
Mr. Rustad, who returned to the Conservatives Monday after being expelled from caucus last Friday, said they have had unity talks with CentreBC, a party of eight MLAs who were formerly Conservatives.
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who → return → MLAs
He himself is a long-time MLA who led the Conservatives from a fringe party to within a hair of winning the previous provincial election in 2024 before being ousted as leader.
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who → lead → leader
“The province cannot afford two opposition parties while [Premier] David Eby measures the timing of an election,” he said in a news release.
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he → afford → release
He stated the chances of a merger are high, but neither the Conservatives nor CentreBC would confirm any efforts to coalesce centre-right politicians into one party.
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Conservatives → state → party
Mr. Rustad said he would not impose his vision on the renewed party, and he advised former BC Liberal premiers Christy Clark and Gordon Campbell to follow his example.
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he → say → example
He identified both of them as among the ”players" trying to manoeuvre what he called the centre right, and said they should realize that “their time is over.”
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time → identify → what
The caucus of B.C.’s governing NDP met Sunday night to discuss a potential early election after Ms. Findlay’s resignation, raising the prospect of the vote happening while the Opposition has no permanent leader.
Mr. Rustad said he accepted an offer to rejoin the Conservatives because he believes in Lorne Doerkson, their new interim leader.
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he → govern → Doerkson
Mr. Doerkson was first elected to represent a riding in the Interior in 2020 for the BC Liberal Party, which later rebranded itself as BC United, before he crossed the floor to join the Conservatives and was re-elected in 2024.
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he → elect → 2024
Mr. Doerkson is expected to speak to reporters for his first time as party leader on Tuesday.
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Doerkson → expect → Tuesday
Ms. Findlay said Sunday that she would remain the Conservative candidate for a by-election this Saturday in Abbotsford-Mission.
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she → say → Mission
But a snap provincial election called before then would override that.
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election → call → that
Her resignation as leader followed weeks of upheaval in the Conservative caucus, with the defection or expulsion of 13 MLAs, including Mr. Rustad.
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resignation → follow → Rustad
He said Monday that he asked Ms. Findlay to step down last Wednesday at a caucus meeting, where there was “emotion and frustration around the table.”
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he → say → table
The next day, he said, he got a text from her expelling him, but 15 minutes later that was rescinded.
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that → say → him
On Friday, he was once again told he was out.
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he → tell → Friday
Ms. Findlay’s departure prompted the NDP caucus to meet on Sunday night, according to an e-mail from party staff that was inadvertently sent to all legislators on Sunday, instead of just those on the government benches.
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that → prompt → benches
“I’m sure you’ve seen by now, but KLF has resigned as leader of the BC Conservatives,” the e-mail obtained by The Canadian Press said.
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mail → ’m → Press
The message said the meeting was to “discuss and hear from Cheryl and her team,” an apparent reference to Cheryl Oates, Mr. Eby’s former chief of staff, who has been appointed to manage the NDP campaign for the next election, whenever it is held.
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it → say → election
In a question-and-answer period with Union of BC Municipalities conference delegates after Mr. Eby’s keynote address last week, the Premier ducked questions about an early election call.
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Premier → duck → call
Conference delegates on Wednesday had passed an emergency resolution urging Mr. Eby to hold off on calling an election until after October’s municipal votes, to avoid interfering with local campaigns.
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delegates → pass → campaigns
Mr. Eby told the crowd he understood the anxiety that duelling elections could create and that he would take the resolution and its concerns seriously.
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he → tell → resolution
B.C. Attorney-General Niki Sharma was asked at an unrelated news conference Monday whether it was ethical to call an election with the Opposition in such disarray.
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it → ask → disarray
She declined to answer the question directly after being asked twice.
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She → decline → question
“If the Premier decided to do an election call, he will do so by recommending that to the Lieutenant-Governor in accordance with our Constitution and all the laws,” she said.
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she → decide → Constitution
Ross Pink, a professor of political science at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, said the Opposition should appoint a new leader as soon as possible, adding campaign debates have frequently catapulted lesser-known political leaders toward wider electoral victories.
The professor, who has run a mentorship program for the past five years pairing Kwantlen students with provincial and federal politicians for four-month stints, said Mr. Eby’s election calculus could reap huge rewards or backfire immensely.
“Politics really is always about opportunity and timing,” Prof. Pink said.
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Pink → say → opportunity
The Aporia
