A series of candidates for British Columbia’s upcoming provincial election have disappeared from the B.C. Conservatives’ online list of nominees, as some former BC United members move into the Conservative fold.
This comes after last week’s reshaping of B.C.’s political landscape when BCU Leader Kevin Falcon announced he was suspending his party’s campaign.
Some former candidates complained that the Conservatives were being infiltrated by the Official Opposition and at least one said they planned to run as an independent. Others have chosen not to run at all.
Some of those whose names no longer appear on the Conservatives’ website took to social media to complain about the changes and accuse the party of shifting its values.
In a post on social media platform X, Dupinder Kaur Saran says she will now be running as an independent in Surrey-Panorama because another Conservative had been “bullied” into standing there instead.
“I could no longer watch this drama unfold & did the right thing by moving to a side, to make room for the Whiterock candidate. I will now be running Independent in my riding. The Provincial Conservative Party is now a Liberal Party running under the Conservative Banner,” Saran wrote.
Former Prince George-Mackenzie candidate Rachael Weber — whose social media content about the “5G Genocide” had drawn criticism from BC United — confirmed in a Facebook post that she had been replaced in what she called “a matter of deep sadness for me.”
“I believe this Conservative Party of BC is no longer Conservative but running under the guise of the name Conservative. They have allowed many BC United (Liberal) candidates to infiltrate the party and have lost sight of the real Conservative values we as Conservatives hold dear,” Weber said.
“Your new Conservative candidate for this riding will more than likely be BC United Liberal opposition.”
Former BC United candidate in Burnaby North Michael Wu will now represent the Conservatives there, with the party’s former nominee, Simon Chandler, moved to Burnaby East.
Former BC United nominees Scott McInnes in Columbia River Revelstoke, and Keenan Adams in Port Coquitlam, become the Conservative candidates in those ridings instead.
Falcon and B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad last week announced a deal to pool candidates under the Conservative banner to avoid vote splitting that could favour Premier David Eby’s NDP in the Oct. 19 election.
In the wake of that announcement, a number of BCU candidates and MLAs announced they would move over to the Conservatives, while others said they were leaving politics altogether.
BC United MLA Jackie Tegart, who represents the Fraser Nicola riding, is among those to decide not to seek re-election in the Oct. 19 election.
“Over the past 11 years, we have faced extraordinary challenges—wildfires, landslides, floods, and atmospheric rivers—that tested the resilience of our communities. Yet, time and again, I witnessed the incredible spirit of our people, stepping up to support one another in ways that were often unprecedented. It has been my privilege to advocate on behalf of such a strong and united constituency, even when government actions fell short,” she wrote on social media Tuesday.
BC United MLA Shirley Bond said Thursday she was not running in the next election, while MLA Todd Stone said hours prior that he was leaving politics and threw his support behind the Conservative Party.