Sunday September 1, 2024 | ESQUIMALT, BC
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
BC United was the right fit for Meagan Brame as a candidate in the 2024 provincial BC election. She was their candidate in Esquimalt-Colwood until August 28.
But since BC United Party Leader Kevin Falcon pulled the plug for all his party’s candidates last week the topic of ‘which party’ and ‘will she still run’ has come up. Brame won’t tip either way (to BC Conservative or BC NDP), she told Island Social Trends today.
Brame still has her campaign signs, T-shirt and hats in her basement at home. All the vendors have been paid but it’s useless merchandise for her now. She sold her child care business as part of shifting into running for political politics (though she was ready to do that anyhow after 36 years).
Maintaining the centre-right:
Falcon has already tossed his own support to the Conservative Party of BC. Under the lead of BC Conservative Party John Rustad, Falcon will still try to influence the election by helping Rustad fill the remaining candidacies across BC. The goal is to match the BC NDP with 93 candidates across 93 ridings and prevent vote-splitting on the right-leaning side of the political spectrum.
For Falcon it’s a simple as not wanting the NDP to continue running government in BC and for that he was willing to throw all the candidate and their campaigns under the bus.
A few former BC United candidates will be handpicked to run for the BC Conservatives, bringing their slate up to 93 candidates across the provinces to match the BC NDP. A strong two-way race between the BC NDP and BC Conservatives is now expected, with the right-leaning vote split now eliminated.
Politics for the sake of power:
This is the sort of politics that BC Green Leader Sonia Furstenau refers to as ‘running for power’ instead of for people and policies, as she stated in a press conference on August 28.
She held that press conference within an hour of the BC Conservatives news conference when BC United Leader Falcon threw in the towel but then aligned himself with the BC Conservatives in order to not split the right-leaning vote.
Party lanes and candidate values:
As Brame says, she could live with about 70% of what the BC Conservatives were standing for but could not accommodate the rest; she wiould not have aligned with their views or stance on “women, LGBT, climate change and vaccination”.
And as for the BC NDP she finds them too stuck in their ways without being adaptive when things don’t work. “They have one mindset and they will not vary from it at all,” says Brame about the BC NDP.
By comparison, Brame says this: “In municipal government we’re mandated to have an open mind at all times to see things from all perspectives, to find a path forward that is best for the greater good. And that has been my philosophy — to just look at everything, debate it back and forth, listen to everybody, and find my best path forward that I can live with.”
She thought BC United would be like that, more conversational to tweak some parts of policies then move forward. I’m just not sure if that will happen with the BC Conservatives, or whether it will be ‘my way or the highway’ — and they’re untested, so it’s hard to know where it will fall,” said Brame.
Only one candidate in Esquimalt-Colwood:
Brame is now taking some time off with family — husband, grown sons, and grandchildren. She might take a job in teaching early childhood education or consult as a parent coach, or perhaps work in hospitality or for a developer. She has options.
Meanwhile, with Brame no longer running in Esquimalt-Colwood, there is only the BC Green candidate Camille Currie running now; BC NDP candidate Mitzi Dean is no longer not seeking re-election having pulled her nomination yesterday in order to focus on her health and family.
Currie says he is a “reliable secure option” for voters in Esquimalt-Colwood and that she “best represents the local riding”. She says that “people feel they haven’t had that for a very long time”.
BC Election date:
The BC provincial election will be held on Saturday October 19, 2024. Official campaigns start September 21. Advance voting is available on October 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, and 16.
===== RELATED:
- Mitzi Dean pulls out of election 2024 (August 31, 2024)
- BC Conservatives claim center-right lane in fall election race (August 28, 2024)
- The Langford-Highlands race is on (August 23, 2024)
- Rob Fleming not running in 2024 election (July 4, 2024)
- Government’s job to keep running the province (June 18, 2024)
- NEWS SECTIONS: BC ELECTION 2024 | POLITICS | VANCOUVER ISLAND