Saturday May 11, 2024 | METCHOSIN, BC [Updated 10 pm]
Political analysis by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Long-time Sooke-based entrepreneur David Evans has won the BC Greens candidacy for the new provincial riding of Juan de Fuca-Malahat. The contender was Kathy Code.
The vote to choose a candidate was held at the Metchosin Arts & Cultural Centre, emceed by former two-time BC Green candidate (and former District of Metchosin councillor) Andy McKinnon.
The newly-boundaried riding of about 44,980 people includes Sooke, Metchosin, Malahat, East Sooke, Shawnigan Lake, Mill Bay, Cobble Hill, and west beyond Otter Point all the way out to Port Renfrew.
Vancouver Island now has 15 ridings, up from 14. There will be 93 seats in the BC Legislative Assembly after the October 19, 2024 election, up from the current 87.
The outgoing boundaries were changed largely to reflect population increases which sometimes creates some challenging geographical mapping for candidates and MLAs (as in the case of Juan de Fuca-Malahat which will require travelling the Malahat section of Highway 1).
Two-way race:
BC Green Leader Sonia Furstenau said she has been pleased with the quality of nominees for Juan de Fuca-Malahat and that the party is maturing (races now, not just acclamations), and that contenders have been collaborative.
Today David Evans said that environmental issues are important, giving highlight to water, biosolids and the use of solar technology. In addition to running The Stick in the Mud Coffee House for over 15 years and expanding that to a coffee supply wholesale business, Evans today mentioned his communications background and his heaps of optimism. He referred to the oceanside forested riding as a place of “sapphires and emeralds”; Evans’ business shirt was a shimmery blue and his tie was green.
Contender Kathy Code — who helped with the Fairy Creek protests in recent years — says it’s time to change the status quo and that “this is a pivotal moment in BC history” to do something about climate change. She worked for the BC Government for 21 years and has a Masters in environmental management.
“Society seems pretty broken in a number of ways,” she said, in her speech ahead of the vote to choose one of the two contenders. Code wore a BC Green campaign-style T-shirt for today’s event.
Winning the vote:
Evans won on the first round of voting, with just over 70% of the votes. The room held about 25 to 30 party members and there were more who voted online. The meeting was livestreamed via Zoom.
Attending in the room were SD62 Trustee Ebony Logins, long-time community leaders David and Carol Mallett, Stan Evans (David’s dad) , several older folks, and a lot of new younger folks (new political blood in the growing party). District of Metchosin Councillor Jay Shukin attended. Toward the end political organizer Diane Bernard also showed up.
In his acceptance speech Evans appealed to Code right away, saying he hopes she will contribute her depth of knowledge about the other side of riding (Code lives up the Malahat in Cobble Hill).
“Let’s do this,” said Evans, clearly ready to take on the campaign with high energy. What he wants to do for the riding is “to walk with you and learn from you and see what we need to do together”. The riding is “very disparate”, said Evans. “I need people on the ground all across this riding; I want to build coalitions and find common ground.”
“Common ground is what’s going to make this party grow and get us more seats in the legislature,” said Evans.
Launching the campaign:
Evans rattled off a list of the things most people care about: affordability, housing, health-care, reproductive rights. He called that a baseline but said “we are all somewhat insecure in our lives right now”.
Evans presented the premise that “the other parties have been at the wheel a long time and that if anyone thinks they would have solved the problems they created (they) would have done it by now, the status quo politicians… the business as usual parties are the problem”.
Emphasizing the environmental file, Evans surmised that the October 2024 election will come “at the end of probably one of the hottest summers we’ve ever seen” while forest fires continue as well as drought.
For years in Sooke the riding’s new candidate went by David. Now he’s Dave (as Furstenau referred to him and as his casual name tag said). A casual shift for greeting the public.
Party leader:
BC Green Leader Sonia Furstenau showed up toward the end of the two-and-a-half hour gathering. She said that the Green Party is “providing alternatives to the status quo which really must go”.
We have this nomination race and you have your candidate David Evans because “I went east and decided to run in Victoria-Beacon Hill”.
“This riding needs a strong voice for water. Water is very serious. We do not currently have a government that is taking the issue of water and the severity of drought seriously,” said Furstenau. She said the BC Greens have for years been advocating for the setting of water tables for every region of the province.
It’s unclear if the slip was intentional for some reason, but today Furstenau in her excitement to congratulate David Evans as the new candidate, referred to the riding name as Malahat-Juan de Fuca. That’s easier to roll off the tongue, but indeed the name of the riding is Juan de Fuca – Malahat.
Other candidates:
So far there do not appear to be candidates for Juan de Fuca – Malahat for either the BC NDP or BC United. The Conservative Party of BC candidate is Dr Marina Sapozknikov.
===== RELATED:
Three provincial electoral areas for west shore (April 18, 2023)
NEWS SECTIONS: BC GREENS | BC ELECTION 2024
===== ABOUT THE WRITER:
Island Social Trends Editor Mary P Brooke has been delivering political news analysis on South Vancouver Island since 2008.
Mary Brooke’s first three publications were focussed on the west shore region: MapleLine Magazine (2008-2010), Sooke Voice News (2011-2013), and West Shore Voice News 2014-2020).
Since 2020 her publication Island Social Trends (with daily posts at IslandSocialTrends.ca) has been delivering provincial and federal news analysis.
Mary P Brooke reports alongside the BC Legislative Press Gallery, since having covered the COVID pandemic daily during 2020-2022. In 2023 she was nominated for a Jack Webster Foundation journalism award for serving her community through journalism.
In 2024, Ms Brooke has launched the Urban Food Resilience Initiatives Society.