BC Liberal leader Andrew Wilkinson spent the morning campaigning on Vancouver Island, including a stop in downtown Courtenay, located in one of the most important ridings in the province, Courtenay-Comox.
In the closest race of the 2017 provincial election, it took 15 days after the election to declare a winner in that riding.
The BC NDP’s Ronna-Rae Leonard won by the narrowest of margins: nine votes.
On May 24, 2020, Elections BC finally declared her the winner after all the absentee ballots were counted.
Of 13 provincial ridings on Vancouver Island, only one riding — Parksville-Qualicum — voted Liberal in 2017. Michelle Stillwell, the incumbent, is running again in Parksville-Qualicum Beach.
Wilkinson is focusing on key issues to win votes.
“What we have to do is convince Islanders that we have their interest at heart. Here in the north Island, forestry is a key issue. And it’s been thoroughly botched by the NDP to the point where the former cabinet minister in this riding had to quit and go away,” Wilkinson said.
BC Green Party leader Sonia Furstenau spoke at a news conference in Squamish on Tuesday.
She announced that Whistler resident Jeremy Valeriote will be seeking to unseat current incumbent BC Liberal MLA Jordan Sturdy. She said the party is running full-out to nominate candidates.
“Unlike the NDP, we did not have several months heads up that we were going into an election,” Furstenau said. But she admits the party is running out of time to nominate candidates in every one of BC’s 87 ridings.
“We will have candidates across this province. I expect we will not have a full slate. But we are running a provide-wide campaign.”
On Liberal turf in Coquitlam Burke Mountain, NDP Leader John Horgan promised to build two new schools. And he took aim at the Liberals plan to cut to the Provincial Sales Tax.
“What I can tell you is eliminating the PST will not build one school. Eliminating the PST will not help one homeless person or one community that feels beset upon by the increase of encampments,” Horgan said.
The Elections BC deadline for nominations in this election closes Friday at 1 p.m. You can see a list of candidates here.
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Mary Griffin
