David Eby’s snap election gamble has handed the B.C. Conservative Party a majority government, CTV News has declared. While some ridings have yet to be called, interim leader Lorne Doerkson’s Conservatives have secured enough seats to relegate the B.C. NDP back to the Opposition benches after nine years in power. Eby’s decision to send voters to the polls two years into his mandate—following weeks of Conservative infighting and defections—will go down as a historic blunder, said political scientist Stewart Prest. “Nobody in the province wanted him to do this,” Prest said on the eve of the election. “He alone ultimately bears responsibility for the NDP having two fewer years in power than they were scheduled to have, and I think that is going to leave a mark on his legacy.” So far, it remains unclear whether Eby will be defeated in his Vancouver-Point Grey riding on top of leading the NDP to defeat. The next leader of B.C. Premier-elect Doerkson has been the MLA for Cariboo-Chilcotin since 2020, but only became interim Conservative leader 34 days ago, following predecessor Kerry-Lynne Findlay’s resignation. For many voters, he was a blank slate contrasted with the baggage Eby carried into the campaign. Prior to entering politics, Doerkson’s resume included newspaper publisher, financial planner, Rotary president and rodeo announcer. A younger Doerkson also competed in bareback riding, which left him with broken bones and a dislocated shoulder. “Sadly, I wasn’t very good at it,” he said during a CTV News leader profile this week. “But I enjoyed the heck out of it.” Doerkson and the Conservatives were elected despite repeated NDP warnings that the party offered a political home for candidates and staffers with extremist views, including some separatist sympathies. Over the course of the campaign, the party ejected two candidates—Joachim Agou and Jordan McIntosh—over offensive social media posts, though both were running in NDP strongholds. Doerkson notably stood behind campaign director Katy Merrifield even after a social media post emerged in which she called Islam an “abhorrent ideology.” After Eby forced the Conservatives into a campaign without a permanent leader, the NDP raised questions about whether Doerkson would be able to serve as premier long-term—as the party’s constitution mandates a leadership race within the next year, and bars interim leaders from running. The Conservative board of directors responded to those concerns with a statement last month assuring the constitution would be amended for Doerkson, should his campaign succeed. “A premier chosen by British Columbians deserves the certainty of leading his party. This amendment will provide it,” the statement added. Such an amendment would require a two-thirds vote—in a party that has been plagued by infighting since nearly clinching victory in 2024. Party in turmoil pulled together When Eby called the election, a schism had been forming on the province’s political right. The Conservatives suffered an exodus of a dozen MLAs over the summer, each citing problems with then-leader Findlay, whose divisive rhetoric led to charges of playing “Trump-style politics.” The trouble continued into mid-September, when allegations emerged that a former executive director for the Conservatives had hired a private investigator to snoop on the party’s critics, both internal and external. “I was unaware of it,” Findlay said at the time. “I can’t really respond. They are just allegations.” Shortly after, eight former Conservatives banded together under CentreBC, a fledgling party billed as a more moderate alternative free from radical affiliations. Findlay ultimately resigned amid mounting calls for her to step aside—and growing speculation of Eby’s snap election intentions. The premier pushed ahead with the call two days later, only to see his political opponents announce their reunification within hours. The snap election interrupted what could have become an “increasingly institutionalized division” on the right side of the political spectrum, Prest said. “This is another piece of David Eby’s legacy,” he said. “He is essentially did the one thing that could bring these different factions of conservatism back together again in the province.” Prest, an associate professor of political science at the University of British Columbia, also argued the reunification should have been easy to predict. “You can’t say no one could possibly have known the Conservatives would put aside their differences to fight an election because that’s exactly what happened in the run up to the 2024 election,” he said. Seven members of CentreBC returned to the Conservatives on the day the writ dropped, leaving only Elenore Sturko, who became the party’s leader. She was defeated Saturday. Conservative platform Doerkson’s party notably did not provide a costed platform in time for the B.C. leaders’ debate, or the first days of advance voting. The plan the Conservatives ultimately presented promised to reduce the province’s expected $14-billion deficit to $10.8 billion over three years, based on economic growth forecasts significantly higher than those included in B.C.’s latest budget. Ahead of the election, Doerkson defended the most ambitious prediction—of 3.2 per cent GDP growth in 2029—as “absolutely doable,” despite skepticism from some economists. The interim leader also denied repeated warnings from the NDP that a Conservative government would be disastrous for public health care, vowing to maintain and improve the universal system, all while offering a $1,000 tax cut for “nearly every” worker in the province and committing to “never raise taxes.” Prest argued it’s going to be hard for the party to make good on its promises. “The province’s economic situation has deteriorated and a good chunk of that is outside the control of any premier, given those trade winds buffeting the country right now,” he said. “It’s hard to claim to be fiscally responsible and also invest in all the kinds of social care and health care that British Columbians are rightly demanding and the Conservatives are promising. At some point, the rubber is going to hit the road.” The party further promised to expand $10-a-day childcare, fund 500 more RCMP officers to be deployed to rural areas over five years, hire 50 more Crown prosecutors, and expand the use of involuntary care. On energy and the environment, the party pledged to triple LNG production by 2035 and end emission limits in a bid to encourage investment. The Conservatives suggested LNG expansion will reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by replacing higher-emission fuels used in Asia and Europe.
