B.C. election: No ex-BC United candidates projected to win their seats

None of the erstwhile BC United candidates who ran arsenic autarkic oregon unaffiliated successful the B.C. election are projected to triumph their seats — including 5 incumbent MLAs.

The results are the last nail successful the coffin for the onetime BC Liberals, who had been the authoritative absorption earlier the predetermination but threw their value down the BC Conservatives successful August amid sagging canvass numbers.

The losses see immoderate large names who had been successful bureau for years, including longtime Peace River South MLA Mike Bernier, Kootenay-Rockies incumbent Tom Shypitka and West Vancouver-Capilano’s Karin Kirkpatrick, the past of whom had astir retired from authorities earlier the BC United implosion spurred her to equine an autarkic run.

Peace River North incumbent Dan Davies and Prince George-North Cariboo incumbent Coralee Oakes were the different 2 erstwhile United MLAs who mislaid their races Saturday.

All 5 past MLAs mislaid to Conservative candidates, galore of them by ample margins.

The suspension of the BC United run saw the Conservatives bring respective United candidates nether their banner arsenic the 2 parties worked unneurotic to enactment guardant the champion slate of candidates to decision the incumbent BC NDP.

But 18 United candidates chose to proceed their campaigns but not arsenic Conservatives, who person positioned themselves arsenic much right-wing.

Conservatives were either elected oregon starring successful each but six of those ridings, with the NDP elected oregon starring successful the others.

The centre-right BC United was erstwhile known arsenic the BC Liberals, who were successful authorities for 16 years earlier the BC NDP took powerfulness successful 2017. The enactment rebranded successful 2023 aft losing crushed successful the 2020 predetermination and successful an effort to region themselves from the national Liberal Party.

There were a grounds 40 autarkic and unaffiliated candidates moving this twelvemonth — and adjacent much unusual, six of them are incumbent MLAs.

Onetime NDP caucus subordinate Adam Walker, who was ousted from the enactment implicit a quality resources issue, mislaid re-election successful his riding of Ladysmith-Oceanside arsenic an autarkic to NDP campaigner Stephanie Higginson.

In Prince George-Mackenzie, unaffiliated campaigner Rachael Weber — who was ousted arsenic the Conservative campaigner by her United hostile Kiel Giddens aft she was accused of spreading conspiracy theories astir 5G exertion — finished past successful her race, with Giddens winning by much than 30 points implicit the NDP.

The autarkic candidates, adjacent those with the powerfulness of incumbency, faced an uphill conflict successful the election.

British Columbians person proven reticent to elite candidates without parties successful the past.

In fact, the state has elected conscionable 1 since the mid-20th century: Delta MLA Vicki Huntington, a fashionable metropolis councillor who served 2 presumption earlier retiring successful 2017.

—With files from Global’s Simon Little and Richard Zussman