Retiring Conservative MP Ed Fast endorses Independent Abbotsford-South Langley candidate
Abbotsford-South Langley candidate Mike de Jong, a former B.C. MLA running as an Independent, has recently received a significant endorsement from retiring federal Conservative MP Ed Fast. Fast, who represented a riding in Abbotsford for over 18 years, announced his retirement from federal politics last year.
After Fast’s announcement, de Jong, who has won eight terms in the B.C. legislature with the B.C. United party (formerly known as the B.C. Liberal Party) and has held cabinet positions in finance and forestry, declared his intention to seek the Conservative Party of Canada nomination for the newly-formed riding of Abbotsford-South Langley.
However, de Jong was informed last month that he had been rejected as the Conservative candidate for the riding, with the party opting for Sukhman Gill, a 25-year-old Langley businessman raised on his family’s blueberry farm. Fast criticized the party’s decision as “profoundly dishonest” and expressed his lack of support for Gill as his successor, despite still advocating for the election of a Conservative government.
In response to Fast’s endorsement, de Jong expressed his gratitude, stating, “Ed Fast has served this community with integrity and conviction. He leaves huge shoes to fill, and if the people of Abbotsford-South Langley select me to succeed him as their MP, I will do my very best to honor the legacy of integrity and principled public service he leaves behind.”
Fast believes that voters in the riding will have two conservative-leaning candidates to choose from on April 28, and he confidently stated, “I know which one I would choose, and I’m pretty sure I know which one the people of Abbotsford-South Langley will choose.”
CBC News reached out to the Conservative Party for comment but has not received a response as of yet. This development sets the stage for an intriguing electoral race in Abbotsford-South Langley, with de Jong running as an Independent candidate with the backing of a seasoned political veteran like Ed Fast.
