B.C. United intends to run some candidates to keep party status

Some voters might still see B.C. United on the ballot for the upcoming provincial election despite recently halting its “full provincewide” campaign.

Lindsay Cote, executive director of B.C. United, told members Friday it still intends to run a select number of candidates in the Oct. 19 election to make sure the party is not deregistered.

“I want to reiterate that we have simply suspended the full provincewide B.C. United campaign for this upcoming provincial election,” Cote said in the letter.

“This does not fold our party or erase our organization,” she said. “Our intent is to ensure that following the October 2024 election, we will be able to have a thorough discussion with our membership about the future of B.C. United. If there is a desire within our membership to rebuild the party, and a plausible path to do so, we want to be in a position to act on this.” 

B.C. United Leader Kevin Falcon announced last week he was suspending the campaign and withdrawing the party’s candidate nominations and instead urging support for the Conservatives to prevent a vote-split that would help the New Democrats win re-election.

B.C. United MLA Karin Kirkpatrick told CBC News the party has expenses and financial commitments to pay. She pointed out that by running some candidates and winning a certain percentage of the votes, the party could be eligible for the $1.81 per vote subsidy from Elections B.C.

“It seems ridiculous but in some ways it would be irresponsible — because of their financial obligations — not to run candidates and risk not getting that money back from Elections B.C.,” she said. 

Many questions left unanswered

But with just over two weeks until the start of the election campaign, it’s still unclear how many of its candidates will stand and in which ridings.

Hamish Telford, a political science professor at the University of the Fraser Valley, said this question is likely to be a challenging one for B.C. United. Following the party’s collapse, some candidates have gone with the B.C. Conservatives or decided to run as Independents, while others are retiring altogether.   

“Who wants to come back and be the sacrificial lamb?” Telford said. 

“Good luck to Kevin Falcon recruiting some people. Maybe he should step up and be one of the candidates in his own riding, show some leadership here.”

Meanwhile, former B.C. United candidates who are now running as Independents say they have to start collecting political donations from scratch. 

“We can’t even accept donations until the writ drops,” said Lumby Mayor Kevin Acton, who is now running as an Independent. “I mean the party can accept donations all year round forever and ever amen.”

Candidates claim party owes them for expenses

Some also claimed the party owes them money for expenses they paid out of pocket. 

Acton says he spent more than $10,000 of his own money to rent a campaign office and pay for media ads as a B.C. United candidate.

Cote has said the party’s goal is to ensure all legitimate expenses are paid, but the party is unable to transfer any funds to campaigns outside of the B.C. United banner.

“It’s almost like the government machine is discouraging you from putting your name in as an Independent representative,” Acton said. “It should be equal for all competitors that are in this game.” 

At least six former B.C. United candidates have said they will run as Independents, along with two former B.C. Conservatives and one former NDP MLA. 

Cote said she was not available for an interview. CBC News has also reached out to Falcon for an interview, and Elections B.C. for comment.