Conservative Sheldon Clare will be heading to Victoria after winning the Prince George-North Cariboo riding.
Clare, a history instructor at the College of Caledonia and former president of the National Firearms Association, has been campaigning since late 2023 for the seat.
He has also dedicated years to training cadets as a reserve army officer and served two terms as president of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 43 in Prince George.
"I'm feeling incredibly grateful to all of the people who came out and voted for me," Clare said at his victory party at the Quesnel Legion. He said he is grateful for his campaign manager Elizabeth Wilson who built the team that helped Clare carry the riding. "I'm looking forward to rolling up my sleeves and getting to work."
Clare joked his first order of business, "taking down all the election signs."
He highlighted building the north-south inter-connector, fixing healthcare in Quesnel and the region and bringing the priorities of Quesnel to the legislature.
When asked if he would have a constituency office in Quesnel or Prince George, Clare said his goal is to have one in each of the major cities in the riding.
Incumbent MLA Coralee Oakes mounted an independent bid to hang on to the riding after the B.C. United campaign collapsed.
"I wish her well and certainly looking forward to a smooth transition," he said of Oakes.
Facing her first defeat in provincial politics, Oakes was at the Billy Barker with her supporters. She said in spite of the loss, she was feeling good and proud of the work she and her team had done.
"We had a bumpy start to the campaign. We started from scratch, we built an amazing campaign team, we worked hard, we connected with voters," she said. She said there are some major projects she's going to start working on and asking the community to support her in them. "Volunteerism is a big piece of who I am so I'm excited to have that opportunity to get back out and connect with a lot of really good organizations."
When asked if she would run for mayor in two years, Oakes said she's been in elected office for two decades and is happy to take a break.
Oakes thanked everyone who put their names on the ballot.
"I wish (Clare) all the best. It's a really big job and clearly the voters decided they wanted him to take on this role. The voters are always right," She said.
