#bcliberals

BCNDP End of Summer Survey 2022

Tonight, I had the displeasure of filling in the BCNDP’s 2022 end of summer survey. I strongly suspect that they delete responses like mine, instead choosing to focus on the ones that gush about how wonderful the party is, made by staunch supporters that, were it not for the BCNDP convincing me to never vote for them again, would certainly drive me from voting for the party due to the way they…

Lori Ackerman and Dan Davies first won election to Fort St. John city council a little over a decade ago, in November 2005. The pair since then have been fixtures on the local body.

On May 7, about three-and-a-half weeks from now, the two municipal veterans will square off for the BC Liberal nomination in Peace River North.

The riding will not have an incumbent in the general election scheduled for May 2017, as Pat Pimm, the BC Liberal who won the seat in 2009 and 2013, intends to retire from public office.

Peace River North ought to be a very safe government seat, so whomever wins the nomination soon may be looking for a residence in Victoria.

The nomination tilt itself looks to be a closely-fought contest.

Ackerman won re-election to the Fort St. John council in 2008, and three years later she prevailed over two other candidates to win the Mayor’s office. She was re-elected in 2014 by acclamation.

Davies won re-election to council in 2008, 2011 and 2014. He improved his position in all three of those latter tilts, and topped the polls in the last contest.

In the spring of 2011, Davies made a bid to win the federal Conservative nomination in Prince George-Peace River. The riding for nearly two decades was held by Jay Hill, who first captured the seat in 1993 as a Reform candidate.

After Hill announced his intention to retire, a field of six challengers vied for the Tory nomination. Among that number was Colin Kinsley, a former Mayor of Prince George, Cameron Stoltz, a Prince George councillor, and Bob Zimmer, Don Irwin and Davies from the Fort St. John city council.

Zimmer prevailed after six ballot counts, while Davies finished in second-place.

Peace River North first was created in 1956, and since then – a six-decade period with 16 general elections –  the electoral district never has returned a New Democrat. Social Credit held the riding from its inception until 1996, when Socred MLA Richard Neufeld was re-elected as a Reform representative.

Five years later, in 2001, Neufeld won re-election as a BC Liberal and he held the seat until late 2008, when he accepted an appointment to Canada’s Senate from the Conservative Prime Minister, Stephen Harper.

Neufeld never received less than 48.0 per cent of the vote in Peace River North, and in 2001 – when running for the first time under the BC Liberal banner – he garnered a whopping 73.2 per cent.

Pimm won election as MLA with just 43.2 per cent in 2009, largely because of an unexpectedly strong challenge from Arthur Hadland, an Independent candidate.

Hadland was expected to make an even stronger bid in 2013, but he slipped backward to 24.5 per cent, and Pimm returned to Victoria with a strengthened 58.9 per cent.

Interestingly, Pimm – who sat on Fort St. John council from 1993 to 2005 – first took the BC Liberal nomination in 2009 by defeating Ackerman, Davies and two other candidates.