Lorne Doerkson is the interim B.C. Conservative leader who delivered a victory speech after winning a snap provincial election and will serve as premier-designate.
The Story
British Columbians got their first full look at Lorne Doerkson on Saturday night after the interim B.C. Conservative leader celebrated a sweeping majority win in a snap provincial election called by outgoing Premier David Eby.
In his victory remarks, Doerkson described himself as “the guy from Williams Lake” and linked his political rise to his personal experience of being knocked down and getting back up. “I have watched a lot of people get thrown at a rodeo and I’ll say I’ve been thrown a few times myself,” he said. “But what I’ve learned… (is) you pick up yourself, dust yourself off and you get back on.”
Doerkson has worked as a newspaper publisher and an auto dealer, and he was once little known outside Williams Lake and his home riding of Cariboo-Chilcotin. He has represented Cariboo-Chilcotin since 2020, and his time as a publisher placed him closely in the community.
His sudden rise accelerated in late September after Kerry-Lynne Findlay resigned as Conservative leader. Doerkson was installed as interim leader on Sept. 20, after returning from a trip to Africa, and he began campaigning for premier two days later.
Before that leadership change, the Conservatives had been weakened by waves of defections under Findlay’s tenure. During the early stage of Doerkson’s campaign, his first task was bringing defectors back to the party, including seven people who had said just days earlier that they were joining the upstart CentreBC party.
During the campaign, Doerkson was sometimes a scarce presence on the trail, but he and the Conservatives consistently led Eby and the NDP in opinion polls. Eby faced intense criticism over the decision to call an early election.
In a campaign interview earlier in the run-up, Doerkson said he “didn’t expect this” and “certainly didn’t seek this,” adding that the timing and outcome felt beyond planning: “in (politics) every day is an exciting day and the next one you have no idea what is about to happen.”
Prior to his interim leadership role, Doerkson generally stayed out of the province’s culture-war debate, spending much of his time in the legislature focused on his riding and region, including concerns around wildfires and hospital emergency room closures. His approach to health care was often informed by his experience as someone familiar with emergency rooms.
After the win, Doerkson thanked his political rivals and former opponents. He said, “it asks a lot of a person and a lot of their family” as he thanked Eby for his public service. “He has given to this province for years, of both of those things. So thank you very much, David Eby,” Doerkson said.
He also thanked Green Leader Emily Lowan for “all that she’s done to inspire thousands of young British Columbians,” and his acknowledgment of rivals drew applause as the focus returned to his roots in Williams Lake.
Doerkson’s campaign finances have been handled by Scott Tucker, who owns local Home Hardware in Williams Lake and has served as his financial agent since Doerkson entered politics. Tucker said he has known Doerkson for about 15 years or more, describing him as someone who “not one to go it alone,” and saying Doerkson seeks out guidance and input from others while drawing on his experience in business and volunteering.
With his speech, Doerkson cast his story as a mix of local experience and second chances—insisting that, in politics and in rodeos alike, what matters is getting back up after setbacks.
← More stories