16 months to BC election - or this October?

[GordonH]

Tough in BC. We in the interior are always voting against our coastal overlords. Political leanings in the valley and the larger interior of BC are more closely tied to Alberta than that of the coast. Yet we get to vote against our coastal neighbours every 4 years. I wonder if there could not be some type of realignment down the road?

Got some bad news for you, largest part of BC population is in lower mainland & southern island. So that we’re the most ridings will be.

[occasional thoughts]

Several more-conservative counties in California have attempted to form a new state; Orange County and so on. Let's all send them a Good Luck card, and cc: the Okanagan and Thompson regions. Boundary, East Kootenay, Revelstoke-Golden, Smithers and Terrace, the North Coast have all been NDP from time to time in my lifetime. But the Central Okanagan has a perfect record of not.

Yep, Rep by Pop, that backbone of electoral democracy. Our B.C. boundaries were drawn in geez, 1866, by the British colonial masters in London. Shall we start a latter-day separatist movement? That would be fun. Set the Castanet forums on fire for sure for years to come.

[Eyeswideopen]

Tough in BC. We in the interior are always voting against our coastal overlords. Political leanings in the valley and the larger interior of BC are more closely tied to Alberta than that of the coast. Yet we get to vote against our coastal neighbours every 4 years. I wonder if there could not be some type of realignment down the road?

Please do not try associate the BC interior with MAGA had wearing, oil company and pipeline loving, Trudeau hating, Confederate flag waving, climate change denying Albertchewan idiots!

[bob vernon]

Tough in BC. We in the interior are always voting against our coastal overlords. Political leanings in the valley and the larger interior of BC are more closely tied to Alberta than that of the coast. Yet we get to vote against our coastal neighbours every 4 years. I wonder if there could not be some type of realignment down the road?

We can only hope that the people in the interior come to their senses and realign their voting preferences. Alberta has voted for the right-wing parties for decades and what has it gotten them? All those oil profits were sent to head office in Houston and the province is in debt. They had a non-renewable resource and gave away most of it. Voting like Alberta is a losing proposition.

[ajoker]

Tough in BC. We in the interior are always voting against our coastal overlords. Political leanings in the valley and the larger interior of BC are more closely tied to Alberta than that of the coast. Yet we get to vote against our coastal neighbours every 4 years. I wonder if there could not be some type of realignment down the road?

We can only hope that the people in the interior come to their senses and realign their voting preferences. Alberta has voted for the right-wing parties for decades and what has it gotten them? All those oil profits were sent to head office in Houston and the province is in debt. They had a non-renewable resource and gave away most of it. Voting like Alberta is a losing proposition.

Nah, let's vote in the right and spend our way into oblivion, so when reckoning comes the idiots die off.

[flamingfingers]

It may be that we won't have to wait another year for a BC provincial election.

Seems as if the Sun, Moon and Stars have aligned to temp Horgan and the NDP to look at a snap election this fall.

With the polling numbers so favorable, will he pull the trigger?

B.C. NDP holds massive lead over Liberals, despite lack of enthusiasm for election: poll

https://globalnews.ca/news/7315813/bc-ndp-horgan-poll/

[twobits]

Nope......too much of a coward. He knows he will be made to look like a mental midget in a debate with Wilkinson. He'll hang on to the farce of Governing that the Green Giant gave him until the dying last moment.

[flamingfingers]

^^^^^

The Angus Reid Institute survey finds 48 per cent of decided voters polled would vote NDP, 29 per cent would vote BC Liberal and 14 per cent would vote Green.

Do you actually, seriously believe that a 'debate' or even a series of 'debates' would enable Wilkinson's BC Liberals to substantially improve their 29% and defeat Horgan's 48%??

What can Wilkinson and his BC Liberal party do to make them more electable for the BC voter?

[hobbyguy]

^^^^^

The Angus Reid Institute survey finds 48 per cent of decided voters polled would vote NDP, 29 per cent would vote BC Liberal and 14 per cent would vote Green.

Do you actually, seriously believe that a 'debate' or even a series of 'debates' would enable Wilkinson's BC Liberals to substantially improve their 29% and defeat Horgan's 48%??

What can Wilkinson and his BC Liberal party do to make them more electable for the BC voter?

There is a mixed history to calling early elections. Especially if it is perceived as a crass political move. 2015 it backfired on Jim Prentice. 2014 it worked for Wynne - BUT Wynne was facing a sure non confidence vote anyway. 2014 it backfired on Marois. 2012 it backfired on Charest. 2008 it worked for Charest. 1990 it backfired on Peterson.

Add in how annoyed people will be with an election during a pandemic.

Then consider this: Wilkinson is an MD. What better leader during a pandemic? The post pandemic situation will see a focus on the economy and jobs. The Liberals have an excellent record on the economy and jobs.

The NDP's promises have largely fallen apart. Their much touted "solving the opiod crisis" is a mess. So is the implementation of housing affordability. Against site C is no more. Against LNG is no more. The TMX is being built. Without those largely Liberal things, the jobs situation would be even worse than it is today. What happened to Horgan's promise to "bring back the old forestry jobs"? How happy are people with the dingbat Selena Robinson building "junkie hotels" in their neighborhoods?

There is a LOT under the surface working against the NDP. The only thing Horgan has going for him at the moment is that he was just smart enough to let Bonnie Henry run the show. She is much more popular than Horgan and he is riding on her coattails. Meanwhile, many of the NDP ministers continue to make themselves unpopular.

[GordonH]

Next scheduled provincial election is October 16, 2021
Which is exactly 406 days away.

[Urbane]

It may be that we won't have to wait another year for a BC provincial election.

Seems as if the Sun, Moon and Stars have aligned to temp Horgan and the NDP to look at a snap election this fall.

With the polling numbers so favorable, will he pull the trigger?

Horgan is probably thinking that the economy will falter in the coming year and so he'd rather go to the polls this fall rather than wait until next year. However, there are problems with that line of thinking.

First, there is an agreement with the Greens and unless the Greens push for an election, which is doubtful, Horgan would have to break that agreement. Also, there's a pandemic and people might want to punish Horgan and the NDP for calling an unnecessary election.

My best guess is that Horgan will hold off and continue to honour the agreement that he has with the Green Party.

[flamingfingers]

While I certainly see that there are indicators that are strongly against an election this fall, I do have a reason for wanting an election this fall that will probably result in a majority NDP win, and that is the ability of a NDP majority government to finally drop the ax on the neck of Site C.

That project was ill-conceived, ill-planned and had the Christy Clark BC Liberal government had a brain in their heads, it would never have seen the light of day.

[GordonH]

While I certainly see that there are indicators that are strongly against an election this fall, I do have a reason for wanting an election this fall that will probably result in a majority NDP win, and that is the ability of a NDP majority government to finally drop the ax on the neck of Site C.

That project was ill-conceived, ill-planned and had the Christy Clark BC Liberal government had a brain in their heads, it would never have seen the light of day.

May I ask were does BC look to for its future electricity needs, because EV don’t run on fairy dust.

[flamingfingers]

^^

B.C.’s Site C has become a cash bonfire. Hard decisions are ahead

It was obvious from the start that the Site C hydroelectric dam under construction in northeastern British Columbia was in danger of turning into a financial quagmire.

The NDP had long opposed Site C and, when the party gained power in 2017, it ordered a review by the B.C. Utilities Commission – which is what should have been done years earlier. About $2-billion had been spent by then.

The review found that BC Hydro’s forecast of future demand was “excessively optimistic,” and said “increasingly viable alternative energy” such as wind and geothermal could provide similar benefits. But the commission did not issue a firm yes or no, although it noted that another $2-billion would have to be spent if the project was halted for good.

Former NDP premier Mike Harcourt at the time said Site C was a “clear, unmitigated disaster.” Still, at the end of 2017, NDP Premier John Horgan decided to go ahead – as the budget spiked to $10.7-billion – believing the project was too advanced to stop.

It was the classic sunk-cost fallacy, colloquially described as throwing good money after bad.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion ... are-ahead/

[flamingfingers]

I doubt however that there will be an election this fall. It would be extremely unpopular even though Dr Henry has said it could be done in safety if everyone followed the rules.