Politicians in BC and NB Begin Campaigning with Promises to Voters

September 21, 2024 TruthUSA

Campaigning has officially begun in British Columbia and New Brunswick as politicians hit the campaign trail over the weekend, laying out their party’s plans for the future.

B.C. Premier David Eby kicked off his New Democrat Party campaign on Sept. 20 in Surrey. The riding is expected to be a major battleground in the election, set for Oct. 19.

“I believe in the potential of British Columbia,” Eby said in a video posted on the X platform by the BC NDP. “This is the most beautiful place on the planet, in my opinion, but it’s not about the trees and the rivers and the mountains. It’s about the people of British Columbia. That is our potential. That is what this election is about.”

Eby made a stop at the Richmond campaign office on Sept. 21.

The Conservative Party of B.C. also started campaigning at Vancouver’s Crab Park and was expected to head to an election rally on Vancouver Island later in the day.

The Epoch Times reached out to the Conservative Party but did not hear back by publication time.

Green Party leader Sonia Fursteanu said she is looking forward to meeting voters and offering an alternative to the Conservatives and NDP.

“We’re not here to play the same old political games. We’re here to put people first. The only way to do that? Elect more Green MLAs,” Furstenau said in a Sept. 21 news release.

“We’re hitting the streets, meeting voters face-to-face, and listening to what really matters to them. The BC Greens are not just a party, we’re a movement. And when people mobilize, we win.”

The party said it will be focusing on key ridings including Victoria-Beacon Hill, Saanich North and the Islands, Courteny-Comox, Kootenay Central, West Vancouver-Sea to Sky, Powell River-Sunshine Coast, Esquimalt-Colwood, Cowichan Valley, and Oak Bay-Gordon Head.

Support for the party is growing in these areas, according to the release.

Recent polls have the NDP and Conservatives neck and neck. According to a Sept. 16 Leger poll, 44 percent of voters said they’ll vote for the NDP and 42 percent said they’ll vote Conservative. Eleven percent said they’ll be voting Green.

The biggest issues for voters in the election are housing affordability, health care, inflation, rising interest rates, and the economy, Leger said.

New Brunswick

New Brunswick’s provincial election officially got underway on Sept. 19, when Premier Blaine Higgs met with Lt.-Gov. Brenda Murphy to formalize the election period.

The vote is scheduled for Oct. 21. If re-elected, it would be Higg’s third term in office.

Higgs spent the first day of the campaign in Edmundston.

“We discussed our HST cut and the importance of having strong voices at the table in the North,” he said in a Sept. 20 post on X.

“It was nice to engage with different people in the ridings, along with our candidates Michel Morin and Roger Quimper.”

The Liberal Party of New Brunswick has made several campaign announcements since the writ was dropped, including eliminating the provincial sales tax on electricity bills for homeowners and cutting the tax on multi-housing construction to spur housing development. Party leader Susan Holt also announced they would offer retention payments to provincial nurses.

New Brunswick Green Party leader David Coon was in St. Stephen with the candidate for St. Croxi, Mark Groleau.

Coon said they were releasing Green Party plans for rural services, “particularly around access to justice.”

“The Green Party is committed to undoing Liberal and Conservative cuts that have weakened rural residents’ timely access to justice,” Coon said in a Sept. 21 X post.

“We’re also focused on meeting the unique infrastructure needs of rural communities, like re-establishing court services and ensuring year-round ferry from Campobello Island to L’Etete.”

A recent poll found support for the provincial Liberals was slightly ahead of that for the Conservatives, with 35 percent of voters saying they will cast a ballot for the NB Liberal Party and 32 percent saying they support the Conservatives. The Green Party in New Brunswick has 10 percent of voter support.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.

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