It seems that the unthinkable (for some) has happened: Premier Christy Clark’s government has been defeated and B.C. Lt.-Gov. Judith Guichon has given the NDP along with the support of the Green Party a chance to govern.
Do you think this was a good decision or would you rather have seen the Lt.-Gov. call for another election?
And what will this do to Canada’s pipeline development going forward?
Blue Like You2 
I think the LG did the right thing based on precedence as LG is supposed to follow convention not politics. Now do I believe the NDP-Green coalition will be bad for BC, you bet. That being said I think an election now would yield an NDP majority so better to let people see how bad they can be and then throw them out after a year or two than have a full four year NDP government. And the Greens on a few issues will disagree, for example Greens won’t support replacing secret ballot for card check in union certification. Temporary bad news on pipelines, but the feds can override the province and no guarantees it will last long. While bad news for BC short term, I feel a short stint in opposition and the BC Liberals getting a new leader can greatly improve their chances next time around.
LikeLike
Great observations, Miles. I agree that sometimes the electorate needs to witness the ramifications of a particular mandate. And we are seeing that federally with the fiscally-irresponsible Trudeau government. The pendulum will swing back eventually.
LikeLike
Agree with Miles. There have been a couple of polls out this week, one of which indicates a surge in support for the BC Liberals, but whether this is truly buyers’ remorse or phantom polling remains to be seen.
The Liberals were in power for 16 years, so for most people who are not particularly partisan or into politics, it was “time for a change”. It’s hard to see how the NDP-Green alliance can survive for long, given that Weaver will only guarantee support on confidence bills. Even then, the vote will be tied, and the NDP Speaker will have to break the tie. The best result would seem to be an NDP-Green alliance stumbling along for a few months before falling out with each other, and as Harold Macmillan once opined when asked what is likely to blow a government off course, “Events, dear boy, events.”
From today’s Times-Colonist :”Horgan is in a better position to govern than Clark was, but just barely. He would do well to remember that he did not win by a landslide, and that Clark was not overwhelmingly rejected. Sixty per cent of voters did not want the Liberals, but 60% did not want the NDP, either.”
LikeLike
The polls might be correct as around 4 percent of the population voted Greens this time but were dissatisfied BC Liberals so could see them returning to the BC Liberals. My real concern is even if those polls are correct the Greens and NDP would cut a deal in several ridings not to run candidates against each other and thus the NDP could win that way despite losing the popular vote. After a year or two, I think Weaver and Horgan will have had enough personal battles they are less willing to do this never mind with some baggage and a new leader the BC Liberals might be able to get back to close to 50 percent. Also in BC we have groups like Leadnow and Dogwood Initiative who are very good at organizing strategic voting whereas after two years of progressive governments at both levels I think a lot of their support will dry up. Let’s remember the fact that after 16 years in government, the BC Liberals still won more seats and votes is quite an accomplishment, normally after this long in government, it is a landslide for the opposition, not falling a bit short in seats and votes much like the 1972, 1991, and 2001 elections, so while disappointed with the NDP forming government, I feel the BC Liberals did quite well considering the circumstances and despite 16 years in opposition many are still not comfortable with the NDP.
LikeLike
PS. Thanks to Joanne for giving us West coasters a chance to talk about our political situation. We do get a tad fed up with the constant angst over Ontario and Quebec. 🙂
LikeLike
Ha-ha! My pleasure, Jad. I appreciate you and Miles weighing in here to give me your POV.
At least Trudeau didn’t forget B.C. on Canada Day. 😉
LikeLike