EDITORIAL – Election is still a close call in B.C., but not in Kamloops ridings
Networks were kept busy with the ‘too close to call’ election.
An editorial by Mel Rothenburger.
THEY SAID it would be close and they weren’t wrong. Last night’s B.C. election was a nail biter and still is.
Congratulations are in order to local BC Conservative candidates Ward Stamer in Kamloops-North Thompson and Peter Milobar in Kamloops Centre for prevailing in their ridings. They will be part of a solid blue Interior, while the Lower Mainland, Island and Coast are pretty much pure orange.
At this writing (Oct. 20, 2024), who will form government remains up for grabs, with the NDP holding a one-seat edge over the Conservatives but a seat short of the 47 needed for a majority. Assuming the Greens hold on to the two seats they currently lead, they’ll hold the balance of power and, presumably, the ability to keep a minority NDP government in office, at least for awhile.
Throughout the evening, the NDP and Conservatives exchanged leads minute by minute.
A few highlights:
After a hectic election day marked by glitches caused by the weather and some power outages, the polls closed at 8 p.m. and TV commentators began repeating ad nauseum that “it’s very early” until we were sick of hearing it.
At 8:19, however, Conservative leader John Rustad was declared the winner in his Nechako Lakes riding.
A few minutes later, Milobar and Stamer were leading in their ridings. While Milobar won comfortably over the NDP’s Kamal Grewal by a couple of thousand votes, Stamer was the real surprise — not necessarily by the fact he won but by how much. At this point he sits with a whopping 17,538 votes compared to the NDP’s Maddi Glenn, who has 9,549. That means Stamer has a clear majority of votes with 60 per cent compared to Genn’s 33. Milobar, on the other hand, is in with just under 49 per cent.
Dennis Giesbrecht, the Conservative candidate in Kamloops Centre until he got shuffled by the party to Vernon-Lumby when Milobar jumped ship as BC United sank, enjoyed a brief lead in the Okanagan riding but by 8:45 had fallen behind. At the end of the evening, he was a point behind incumbent NDPer Harwinder Sandhu, who had 11,528 votes to 11,144 for Giesbrecht.
Sadly, the capable Green leader Sonia Furstenau fell behind Grace Lore of the NDP early in Victoria Beacon Hill and never caught up. She delivered an emotional but gracious concession speech at 9:10 p.m., but didn’t indicate whether she’ll stay on as leader.
Meanwhile, David Eby was an easy winner in his riding.
Some random thoughts on the outcome:
The Greens are left in the challenging position of having a couple of seats in the legislature but may have to find a new leader, and will have some tough decisions to make about where to go with it.
Had BC United kept its act together, it might easily have held the balance of power and been a real force in provincial politics for the next several years. And Todd Stone would still be one of our local MLAs along with Milobar.
And, geographically, we’re very much a divided province, with major population centres at the Coast all NDP and the Interior now solidly Conservative. Could make for some interesting policy differences between the two halves of the province.
No independents won but they certainly had an impact, and probably were the deciding factor in who did win a number of ridings.
There was much talk during the night about popular vote versus number of seats. It’s an irrelevant discussion; ridings exist to provide regional equity and give local voters a say. By the way, the NDP leads in the popular vote.
Should the Conservatives overtake the NDP, will Milobar or Stamer get cabinet seats? Likely not the rookie Stamer, but Milobar seems likely because of his experience.
Now that he’ll be an MLA, Stamer will have to resign as mayor of Barriere.
The major issue that determined the outcome? Clearly, drug addiction, street disorder and a general unhappiness with the NDP.
A total of 2,037,552 votes have been counted so far, out of 3,550,017 registered.
Rustad says if the seat count remains as is and the NDP forms a minority government, the Conservatives will fight hard to defeat it at the earliest opportunity and force another election. Please, no. let’s have some quiet time.
Mel Rothenburger is a former regular contributor to CFJC-TV and CBC radio, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a recipient of the Jack Webster Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award, and a Webster Foundation Commentator of the Year finalist. He has served as mayor of Kamloops, school board chair and TNRD director, and is a retired daily newspaper editor. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.
ArmchairMayor.ca 
Sorry about this comment. I was using voice recognition and did not proofread so lots of errors. Healthcare demise started during Harper and Chrétien years. This was followed by liaises-faire prescription policy by doctors where oxycontin and fentanyl were prescribed like candy.
Free trade under Mulroney created poverty among the marginalized in the economy. Mulroney outsourced jobs to Mexico, China, Vietnam, Philippines, India leading to many of of our industries leaving the country. this is similar to what happened to Detroit in the United States.We are paying a price for that now
. While on a holiday my wife had an MRI done for $150. It was done in one day. A private MRI in Kamloops, would’ve cost over $1000. I said before private costs like construction medication food, laundry and many other private costs spelled disaster for healthcare.Privatization of seniors facilities under Campbell and Clark destroyed our healthcare system. Private costs inflated by 7 to 8% per year while public costs only inflated by 1.4% per year
When I travelled in Europe many years ago with a maple leaf on my backpack it was hello where are you from that led to sharing a table now it’s Ni Hai .
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Stop demonizing the private sector. After all every government (on the left too) relies on the private sector to deliver public amenities, services, equipment and infrastructure.
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Pierre telling the truth is not demonizing. Are you missing that inflation is eating into people‘s ability to pay their bills? Are you missing the fact that low interest rate are a gift to the private sector It is ab( fact that those with ability to borrow , the private sector, benefits the most from low interest rates.
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A resounding defeat for the so called “progressive forces” which quite frankly are hardly “progressive”. More like an unnecessary distraction of societal remodelling.
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May all the rivers of the sky that torrentially dictate the changes in the beautiful British Columbia express one valid truth herein since ekection day:
” THIS IS BC POLITICS AND WILL REMAIN THAT WAY FOR ANOTHER HUNDRED YEARS, ER, ‘TEETER TOTTER, TEETER TOTTER!’ “
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The “Team Kamloops” adoption of a term makes me a bit nervous.
Having typed that, could the next “leak” from Victoria Street West be an announcement that an existing Mayor is considering a lateral move to run for the vacant spot of Mayor of Barriere??
Stay tuned.
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I actually created the first Team Kamloops when I was mayor. It included me, our MP, our two MLAs, TNRD chair and TteS chief and was designed to help attract new business to town. It must be a catchy title, since various folks keep using it for other things.
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Yes, but let’s call a spade a spade it’s the private sector costs that are causing the problem not only in cost increases in healthcare but also in outsourcing for a quick buck profit jobs and taxes to foreign countries which are not spent in Canada
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Don’t forget Nathan Cullen – voters threw him to the streets like so many dillies from a safe supply dispensary.
A frustrating result for all it seems other than arguably the Greens, who will hold outsized influence. Lefties must be waking up to the realization that socialist Shangri-la politics maybe doesn’t hold water. The difference in popular vote is razor thin and as stated, irrelevant.
A historic climb for the Conservatives. A new force to be reckoned with in BC politics. A few more tweaks and a couple less independents would have made a majority. Voters are clearly unhappy with the NDP, and if David Eby retains leadership, it will be by the thinnest of margins – thinner that the tinfoil that wraps the hits of fentanyl that brought us here this morning.
A dividend electorate. Irreconcilable differences. It sets the stage for another acrid four years of political commentary and what is surely to be an increase in the culture wars.
Count me in.
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“Lefties must be waking up to the realization that socialist Shangri-la politics maybe doesn’t hold water”. Please remember that half … thats half … of BC voters disagree with you. As a matter of actual fact, if you compare conservative vs progressive vote (NDP and Green) … a thing Conservatives dont like to do … the progressive side has 55.1% of the popular vote.
Suddenly, not even close.
Lets just hope that the Ledge has at least the minimum amount of negotiable decorum to manage at least the appearance of the capability needed to rule for all BC’rs. As we already know that Conservatives dont understands what that means … so its likely we will be returning to the polls, wasting money and time.
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It’s not a major difference in percentage, and in any event doesn’t matter.
What we saw yesterday is a historic rise of a Conservative party out of nowhere, and a tired NDP that was running against its own platform and record.
If you are on the side of the left, you see worry. If you’re on the side of the right, you see momentum.
Keep in mind that Kevin Falcon’s bungling was likely an influence on these results.
An upstart party nearly took a majority away from an established franchise in the NDP. That’s the news here, not 5.1%.
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Additionally, do your figures consider only Conservative party votes as the conservative vote? Because right of centre candidates who were former BC United handed about two seats to the NDP. Hardly a resounding referendum siding on the progressive agenda.
The late swap of Dennis to Vernon was also a likely factor in that seat. He did extremely well considering he was a new transplant to that riding.
What should be worrisome to the NDP is the significant non-white vote that went Conservative. East and South Asian in particular.
Four more years of NDP might finally scare off even the most ardent progressive supporters.
There’s nothing wrong with progressive values, how about you just don’t torpedo the province while acting it out.
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I have voted Green anytime there’s been a Green candidate running federally or provincially. If there hadn’t been a Green running in my riding this election, then I would have voted Conservative for the first time in my life.
The NDP has made a shambles of our streets and health-care system, have allowed Indigenous elders to be jailed while supporting foreign pipeline interests, continue to allow wholesale pesticide spraying, have sold out old growth and the caribou and won’t control mining polluters.
Sure, the Conservatives may not do any better, but the NDP had their chance and blew it. So I’m at least one Green voter you could never count in the NDP numbers. And there are more–count on it.
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Wilma, I responded to you twice before, but the firewall, at least the conservative mind of the firewall, refused to publish it. You are right not all Conservatives are alike and not all alike people are conservatives at least not in British Columbia. In British Columbia the conservatives have been born again half a dozen times. What numbers are not in your favour it seems tha That they don’t matter or when reality is in front of your eyes, you ignore it.
Ever since Bennett Senior led the Socreds to victory the Conservatives have abandoned their values and-rolled over into every political spectrum that would take them. You only need to examine the history of your party in British Columbia and you will see they are a chameleon, they care less about regulations that is why they left ICBC BC Hydro BC ferries shamble’s.
They love hierarchy as they fear charge, self interest at their primary objective. Maybe a look at Shangri-La that you speak of below the 49th parallel or next door Alberta and you will see the Opioid problem is everywhere. I am writing this from a small town in Europe, where I have not seen a single person or a drug user or a homeless person the streets are clean, beautiful parks outside cafés no overhead wires a marketplace that would shock you and I’m not talking about a rich northern European country.
Many of the things that these people enjoy are due to the lefties just like many of the things that you enjoy are due to the lefties in Canada,.One of the factors that led to this close election in BC was opioids A poorly understood policy, and poorly explained by the liberal federal government in consort with the NDP in BC.
What you want is what they have below the 49th parallel were over 110,000 people die from street drugs homelessness is rampant and much of this is due to economic issues, social issues, family issues so if you want to deal with these issues deal with the cause not the effect.
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With regard to your comment about the “firewall,” as I’ve explained to you previously, your comments are sometimes way too long for me to handle. Thanks for making this one shorter.
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there are so many unsubstantiated comments on this thread that one is at the loss where to begin. The opiate crisis did not start with the NDP. It started due to over prescription of painkillers and proliferation of street drugs in Canada. This was H artery and Chrétien era as PMinisters. This issue should have been handled through criminal law, which is a federal responsibility, but because healthcare is a provincial responsibility the overlapping jurisdictions created problems .
As far as healthcare is concerned, federal government subsidies were cut, causing a crisis in funding. Associated with this were the private course inflating the healthcare system. A private course rose 7 to 8%.As far as healthcare is concerned, federal government subsidies were cut, causing a crisis in funding. Associated with this where the private course inflating the healthcare system. A private course rose 7 to 8% here on here on year on While public course inflated only 1.4% this is true, not only in healthcare, but in overall cost of living.
as far as the present situation is concerned on our streets, this is very little to do with an attempt by the NDP and the federal liberals to try and solve this crisis by providing clean drugs in order to stop the use of street drugs and stop the number of people dying from overdoses.
BC economy was destroyed by Campbell Clark government were the goodness of the entrepreneur was supposed to solve the economic problems however it only made them worse. cheating was rampant. With cost over-runs in P 3 companies, ICBC, BC Hydro BC Ferries, Forestry and the environment. As for mining companies regulations were implemented and freedom to pollute stopped. We have over 1000 abandoned mind leading in pollutants into our streams and rivers lakes thanks to the conservative management or economy much of this the NDP had to correct because they inherited a mess.
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