Monday October 7, 2024 | MAPLE RIDGE, BC
BC ELECTION CAMPAIGN DAY 17 of 28
BC election campaign news coverage by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Your 28-day voter’s guide for BC Election 2024
Click here for October 8 BC Leaders Debate Link & Analysis [link to come]
While delivering a campaign announcement in Maple Ridge this morning, BC NDP Premier David Eby said about the BC Conservative candidate in his local riding of Vancouver-Point Grey, Paul Ratchford — in the context of views about Orange Shirt Day:
“He is a hateful individual and I think the values of British Columbians and the values of Vancouver-Point Grey are completely at odds with him and with the BC Conservative party conspiracy theory-laden, anti-science, climate-change-is-a-hoax perspective.”
Eby is running for re-election in Vancouver-Point Grey, a key Vancouver riding where he beat then-premier Christy Clark in 2013 in a major victory for the BC NDP on the heels (by that time) 12 years of BC Liberal government, forcing her to find another riding to run in (in order to get back to having a seat in the BC Legislative Assembly).
Ratchford’s campaign page describes him as “firmly rooted in the private sector”, having commenced his professional journey in investment banking and charting “an entrepreneurial course in early-stage companies, venture capital and real estate, reflecting a deep understanding of the dynamics that drive economic growth and prosperity”. Rotchford started StepUp, a grassroots homeowners advocacy group based in Vancouver. He has been opposed to the BC NDP housing taxes and speaks about “sensible municipal property taxes”, enhanced public safety, and is opposed to “home equity taxes proposed by the Liberal/NDP coalition”. [Note: technically there was no Liberal/NDP coalition, there was a Supply and Confidence Agreement that could be cancelled at any time, which in fact the NDP did on September 4, 2024]
The comment made by Eby about his local BC Conservative opponent in a province-wide media availability comes one day ahead of #BCElxn2024 televised leaders debate, It couldn’t be a more powerful reminder of the core strength of this 48-year-old lawyer who now has two years under his belt as Premier.
“It’s been a remarkable honour to serve the people of Vancouver-Point Grey. I’m running again to be re-elected in my local community. I’m running against an individual who on Orange Shirt Day last year … on that day a year ago, the man that i’m running against retweeted that ‘I’m not going to wear an orange shirt today because I don’t stand for the promotion of a false narrative about candidate’s history’. And lies about residential schools. He is a person who has called one of his own colleagues (Elenore Sturko, who is openly gay, married, and has children) … as a groomer. He is a hateful individual,” said Eby today.
“I can’t wait for the community debate to call out that kind of hateful behaviour, to point out the important differences of a government that supports parents with child care, better schools with educational assistants and counsellors to support kids to be successful, build afford housing to support them with the cost of daily life immediately, and the hateful conspiracy theories and the vision of a significantly more expensive BC advanced by the BC Conservatives.”
Debate dates:
The Point Grey community debate will be held on ____ (date tba). The three candidates running in Vancouver-Point Grey are David Eby (BC NDP), Paul Ratchford (BC Conservative), and Devyani Singh (BC Green).
Tomorrow night’s leaders debate (October 8) will be on Global TV at 6:30 pm to 8 pm. [Link to come]
===== RELATED:
- BC Leaders debate on October 8 on Global TV (October 8, 2024 – link to come)
- Voting & governance in BC: two-party system evolving to three-party framework (October 6, 2024)
- BC party leaders clash in radio debate Oct 2 (October 2, 2024)
- BC Greens push for well-being framework in Election 2024 (October 1, 2024)
- Eby’s sunny Friday pit-stop in Oak Bay (September 27, 2024)
- Eby launches BC NDP campaign in Surrey (September 20, 2024)
- BC Greens pitch smart economy & robust safety net (September 10, 2024)
- NEWS SECTIONS: BC ELECTION 2024 NEWS | POLITICS | HEALTH CARE
- BC ELECTION CALENDAR: 28-DAY ITINERARY & CALENDAR