BC United candidate Meagan Brame teared up Wednesday, feeling “cheated” and disappointed after hearing via a text message that her campaign was essentially over.
“I’m disappointed as hell,” said Brame, a former Esquimalt councillor nominated in the Esquimalt-Colwood riding.
BC United Leader Kevin Falcon announced Wednesday he had finalized a deal with B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad to suspend his party’s campaign and withdraw its nominated candidates in order to prevent a vote split that would favour the NDP.
The Conservatives will draw from BC United’s pool of incumbent MLAs and candidates and review candidates based on an improved vetting process, according to the agreement.
Brame received the news in a text from a campaign worker — “not the party” — who heard it on the news.
“I have been working my patootie off for months,” Brame said. “I have an amazing team, we’re small but mighty, so it’s hard — I actually felt we might have had a chance in our riding.”
Now her name won’t even appear on the ballot on Oct. 19. “I feel like I was cheated out of trying now.”
Brame said she was approached to join the Conservatives on Tuesday night — when, unbeknownst to her, Falcon and Rustad were meeting — “and I told them ‘no’ for a variety of reasons.”
“I won’t sell my integrity for a vote,” she said.
When Rustad was asked in a press conference Wednesday if he will moderate his views on topics such as climate change — he was ousted from the B.C. Liberals after he suggested carbon dioxide emissions were not contributing to climate change — he didn’t answer the question other than to say “we’re not changing our principles and the values that we stand for.”
Juan de Fuca-Malahat BC United candidate Herb Haldane, a former Sooke councillor, was still processing the news Wednesday, unsure of what to do next.
“I’m sort of weighing my options,” he said.
Haldane described himself as a “centrist” — a fan of neither Rustad “because he’s too far right” nor Premier David Eby, who is too far left. Haldane’s not a New Democrat voter, but he liked former NDP premier John Horgan, who he thought was more moderate.
“So, you know, I’m kind of stuck in the middle here,” Haldane said. “I hope Rustad softens his stance on a few things and gets away from this conspiracy stuff and is more inclusive of all people.”
Vancouver Island University professor Michael MacKenzie, who holds the university’s Jarislowsky Chair in Trust and Political Leadership, called the developments “shocking.”
Given that Falcon was until this week calling the B.C. Conservatives the conspiracy party — alluding to candidates who have floated theories about everything from COVID to 5G networks — it’s a stretch to then have the leaders on stage together feigning co-operation, he said.
“I think this sort of thing makes it difficult for people to trust politicians,” MacKenzie said.
Falcon encouraged BC United candidates and supporters to unite behind Rustad and the Conservatives.
But MacKenzie said it’s unclear whether voters and candidates who stuck with the B.C. Liberals as they became BC United will transfer that support to the Conservatives, whom they might view as too extreme.
That means some voters might not have “any acceptable choices” in the Oct. 19 election, he said. They might cast a ballot for something they are not comfortable with, or not vote at all.
“So it was probably the right move strategically for the right of the political spectrum,” MacKenzie said. “But is this a good thing for our democracy? I’m not so sure.”
Royal Roads University professor David Black, a political communications expert, said he would have loved to be in the room Tuesday night as the deal was hashed out, calling it a surprising turn of events in the 11th hour.
“The eventual collapse of BC United was a slow-moving train wreck but the speed, the celerity with which this decision was made is stunning,” Black said.
“To undo a storied party like this, to take [Falcon] out of this election, to value beating the NDP by joining with the Conservatives more than legacy of your party — and at least the theory of your own electoral viability, your competitiveness — that’s a lot to process and to act on in the space of 24 hours,” he said.
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