VICTORIA — The opposition Conservative Party has won an election in the Canadian province of British Columbia for the first time in nearly 100 years, promising to ramp up liquefied natural gas production, provisional results showed on Sunday, Reuters reported.
Source: Reuters, Oct 25, via BOE Report
The right-leaning Conservatives won 64 of the 93 seats and the New Democrats won 27, according to Reuters. It is the first Conservative provincial election win since 1928, and the result marks an end to nine years of power for the left-of-centre New Democrats, who voiced opposition to new oil pipelines and supported a ban on tankers along the province's northern coast.
Source: Reuters, Oct 25, via BOE Report
Conservative leader Lorne Doerkson, who will become the next premier of the province, promised to "supercharge" B.C. "I believe in energy… We will cut red tape like it's never been cut before," Doerkson said in his victory speech, according to Reuters. The Conservatives pledged to double natural gas production by 2032 and more than triple it by 2035, to end emissions limits, replace the province's carbon tax framework and reach out to energy providers that had left the province's LNG sector since 2018, including ExxonMobil, Chevron and Woodside, Reuters reported.
Source: Reuters, Oct 25, via BOE Report
Eby resigns, Carney congratulates Doerkson
Outgoing premier David Eby announced that he would offer his resignation as leader of the New Democratic Party, the NPI Cascadia Advocate reported in an election-night recap citing The Canadian Press. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney congratulated Doerkson in a statement, saying he looked forward to working with him as premier "to get more homes built, unleash our full potential as an energy superpower, and build a stronger British Columbia and a stronger Canada for all."
Source: NPI Cascadia Advocate / Canadian Press recap, Oct 25
Doerkson, 58, was the Conservatives' interim leader, having taken over only about five weeks earlier after a period of leadership turmoil in the party, and the Conservatives won a majority by flipping a number of ridings in the Vancouver suburbs and exurbs, with Surrey — a city with one of Canada's largest Punjabi populations — playing a critical role, the Cascadia Advocate reported. Eby had called the snap election two years early despite a one-seat majority, saying at first that he needed a stronger mandate to deal with the economic uncertainty brought on by U.S. President Donald Trump and U.S. tariffs.
Source: NPI Cascadia Advocate / Canadian Press recap, Oct 25
Polls showed voters were focused on cost-of-living issues, healthcare, and the ongoing trade war with Trump, according to Reuters. Eby had called for a strong mandate to confront Trump's tariff threats. The province will host a business summit in Vancouver next year, Reuters reported.
Source: Reuters, Oct 25, via BOE Report