Incumbent BC Conservative MLAs Steve Kooner and Teresa Wat say they will run in their Richmond ridings in the Oct. 24 provincial election, while NDP MLA Kelly Greene is not seeking re-election.
The Story
Two incumbent BC Conservatives in Richmond will seek re-election in the Oct. 24 provincial election, according to candidate announcements tied to the snap vote.
Steve Kooner, the sitting MLA for Richmond-Queensborough, said he will run again in his riding. Teresa Wat, the incumbent MLA for Richmond-Bridgeport, also indicated she will seek re-election.
The announcements arrive amid reported Conservative party changes that affected Wat’s candidacy path. She left the BC Conservatives about a month earlier, citing issues with the leadership of Kerry-Lynne Findlay, who has since resigned.
In the fourth Richmond-area riding, Richmond Centre, Hon Chan—currently sitting as an independent—told the Richmond News in an emailed statement that he is seriously considering running for re-election.
Chan’s legal situation is tied to events that preceded the snap election. He was removed from the BC Conservative caucus in March after he was charged with assault, assault by choking and uttering threats. His case has been moved to B.C. Supreme Court, where he is to be tried by judge and jury.
Chan’s comments on the timing of the election were sharply critical; he characterized the Oct. 24 vote as wholly unnecessary and a waste of taxpayers’ money.
The snap election announcement also intersected with the municipal political calendar. One former MLA who had intended to pursue mayoralty politics, Henry Yao, pulled out of the mayoral race late last week, shortly before a Sept. 18 deadline, to seek a seat provincially instead.
Yao, a former MLA for Richmond South Centre (a riding now renamed Richmond Centre), had dropped out of the municipal race at the last minute to run provincially after the BC NDP called a provincial election just one week following the Oct. 17 municipal election.
In explaining the shift, Yao said his decision to enter the mayoral race had been driven by concerns he said he saw linked to the Aster Place social housing complex. He later acknowledged that stepping back from the mayoral contest meant he would be letting people down.
When asked about his thinking behind the provincial run, Yao said he had not spoken with BC NDP leader David Eby about his decision. He also said that, in the face of what he described as uncertainty stemming from external threats, the snap election was needed.
Yao said he considers the possibility of electoral defeat acceptable within the democratic process. He said the public has the right to choose their government and he will respect that decision, while not addressing party-level prospects in detail.
On the NDP side, incumbent Kelly Greene announced that she will not seek re-election in Richmond-Steveston. Greene’s decision means the NDP will need a new candidate to defend the seat as the Oct. 24 contest approaches.
Taken together, the candidate moves set up a varied campaign across Richmond’s four provincial ridings, with two Conservative incumbents expected to run, an independent councillor-turned-MLA weighing a return in Richmond Centre, an NDP incumbent stepping away in Richmond-Steveston, and Henry Yao shifting from municipal politics to a provincial bid amid closely spaced election dates.
← More stories