Victoria/Kelowna – There was plenty of drama over the past week leading into the BC Conservative review of the leadership for John Rustad.
Rustad won easily – 70.66 per cent of the party faithful.
Anything less than 50 per cent of the votes, would have triggered a leadership election. A controversy that the party wanted to avoid. That in light of allegations of phony membership signings in Kelowna area ridings.
From Rustad’s camp: The Conservative Party of BC has concluded its Leadership Review process. Following the Leadership Review Votes being held in 93 ridings, 70.66% of voting members voted “Yes” to whether Rustad should remain as leader. 29.34% voted no. 1,268 members in good standing voted in this process.
In addition, Rustad secured victory in 78 out of the 93 ridings. He lost in 10 ridings, tied in 3, and in 2 ridings, no votes were cast.
“I would like to thank our members for coming out to use their democratic right and voicing their opinion on the direction of our party and movement,” said Rustad. “This process has localized democracy and allowed all members to not only vote in this crucial review, but share their concerns with me directly.”
“I believe the members have given me a mandate to lead and I believe British Columbians are hungry for an unapologetic common sense Conservative government. We will make it happen,” Rustad continued. “It’s time we get back to the basics and be Conservative.”
The vote count process was conducted by an impartial third party and the administering of the Leadership Review process was managed by Mark Robertson, Returning Officer.
Over the course of the summer, he logged more than 12,152 kilometres by car, not including travel throughout the Lower Mainland ridings, to meet with members and oversee voting logistics across the province.
“This became my excellent summer adventure,” said Robertson. “From the Kootenays to the Island, the Cariboo to the Okanagan, I had the privilege of seeing firsthand the enthusiasm of our members and the strength of our party’s grassroots.”
In addition to the Leadership Review, members had the opportunity to vote on whether they approve of John Rustad’s 11-point Leadership Pledge. 80.05% of voting members voted in favour of the following:
- Stop China’s Fentanyl & NDP Drug Dens
- Ban open drug use near homes and schools. Shut down NDP drug-use sites in family areas—end decrim and “safe” supply. Invest in port and border control to stop fentanyl and precursors.
- Protect Kids in Schools
- Scrap SOGI123. Ban age-inappropriate content. Bring in anti-bullying protections. Ban medical transitioning for children under 18.
- Defend BC Property rights
- Repeal DRIPA. Guarantee private property rights for Crown and public land, and access rights in BC law.
- Stand up for women & girls
- Ban biological men from women’s sports and spaces. Create a special prosecutor for attacks on women and gender-based violence.
- Crack down on violent criminals
- Fast-track prosecutions for random attacks. Impose tougher penalties for violent offenders and repeat offenders.
- Unleash BC’s ECONOMIC potential & build pipelines
- Treat economic and resource growth like wartime measures. Use revenue to cut taxes and build critical infrastructure.
- Hire doctors, build hospitals, fire Bonnie Henry
- Cut administrative bloat. Prioritize frontline care. Protect healthcare whistleblowers. Fire the extremist medical officer who proposed creating retail spaces for hard drugs.
- Cut taxes, End deficits
- No tax hikes without a referendum. Deliver a $1,000 rebate through income tax cuts. Stop NDP-style deficit spending.
- Take pride in BC & BUY BC
- Restore the Sir John A. Macdonald statue in Victoria. Teach BC and Canada’s full story. Take pride in BC and buy BC.
- Restore paper ballots & ID requirements in elections
- Take control of our own immigration system. Make it a provincial responsibility and tie it to the province’s needs.
- End FAILED mass Immigration.
- Restore trust and transparency in our elections by strictly mandating ID requirements, hand-counting of ballots, and abolishing newly created legislation that allows voting from anywhere, which leads to massive administrative issues.
The Conservative Party of BC thanks Mark Robertson for his extraordinary effort and dedication, which ensured that the leadership review process was accessible and fair to members across the province. The Party would also like to thank the impartial third party that conducted the vote count and all our volunteers who stepped up and helped in the process.
