BC may see a record-setting number of independent candidates registered and running in the fall provincial election, and perhaps historical numbers elected, not necessarily due to the amalgamation of the BC United and BC Conservative Parties.
Long before the recent bear hug between parties, the independent movement was underway, sparked in BC by a desire to educate and inspire the more than 1.5 million eligible BC voters, who were no-shows on voting day in 2020, to get interested in politics, at least in voting again. Salvatore Vetro, who founded Independent BC, a not-for-profit that recently closed its doors after a year and a half of educating BC voters, has been busy with a handful of volunteers, providing information and education to the public about how to nominate, support and vote for independent representation, getting non-voters engaged and inspired to become directly engaged in the political process again.
“British Columbia was founded and built on Independent Governance,” says Salvatore. “After 120 years of party politics in BC, and such a low turnout on voting day in 2020, I felt voters in BC wanted another choice. It really concerned me that so many people in BC have given up on voting.”
Despite examples of consensus governments including right here in Canada, where the Northwest Territories has a unique governance system characterized by a consensus-based approach that differs from the traditional party-based systems used in provinces, a shift in BC or any of the other provinces is a huge shift in culture.
But it isn’t just Salvatore in BC who thinks a shift is possible and that Canadians are ready for change. On the other side of Canada Nova Scotia has also been educating their province, and with that election not scheduled until 2025, Peter Mac Issac, one of three directors at Independent Nova Scotia, is seeing every single community riding engage in the process.
“When the pebble goes into the pond the rings multiply and the rings go forever and that is what is happening right now in Nova Scotia,” says Peter. “There will be big changes here with our Provincial election next year, count on it.”
Mac Issac is confident by the time Nova Scotia holds its election, scheduled for the summer of 2025, all 55 ridings will have an independent candidate in the running. British Columbia and Nova Scotia may have very well become the bookends for political culture change in Canada, bringing the people back to the forefront of the political process and along with it more balance back to the Legislature, where the voices of Canadians may once again take precedence over the voice of lobby groups and third parties.
Is BC about to go back in time, and get a little closer to its roots, embracing representation with a more direct relationship with the community rather than the party? We will know soon enough if Canada has a true independent movement on its hands and a culture to create a playing field where the fence sitters will get back in the game. Salvatore and Peter believe the shift is here now, starting in BC.
The BC Provincial election is Saturday October 19th, 2024. For a list of candidates running in all ridings go to Election BC, Candidates.
Patricia Jecks. Freelance writer
