In the last provincial election, the B.C. Conservatives fielded just 19 candidates — and received less than 2 per cent of the vote.
Now the party’s website lists a full slate of 93 candidates for the Oct. 19 election, covering every B.C. riding, ahead of the close of nominations on Saturday, and polls suggest the party under Leader John Rustad is running neck and neck with the governing NDP.
David Black, an associate professor at the school of communications and culture at Royal Roads University, said it was “extraordinary” that the B.C. Conservative Party had been able to field a full slate, which shows the party had moved at a scale and speed “very unusual” in B.C. politics.
“This is a party that a year and a half ago was in the low single digits for popular support and has not fielded a full slate of candidates in decades,” said Black, a political communications expert.
The NDP has also put together a full slate of candidates, while Green Leader Sonia Furstenau said this week her party had about 80 candidates.
As of Friday morning, the candidate list on the Elections BC website showed 91 Conservative candidates who had filed nomination papers, NDP candidates in all 93 ridings, and 39 Green candidates.
The Official Opposition B.C. United, whose Leader Kevin Falcon last month ended the party’s campaign to avoid vote-splitting with the Conservatives, does not have any candidates listed by Elections BC, but said it planned to run some candidates to leave open a door to the party being resurrected for future elections.
Thirty-one official candidates have chosen to designate themselves as “Independent,” including some former BC United members who did not go on to receive Conservative backing.
Nominations must be filed with district electoral officers by 1 p.m. Saturday.
Black said the Conservatives had faced the challenge of combining a pool of BC United candidates with their own original candidates.
“Organizationally speaking, whatever happens on Oct. 19, to field a full slate of candidates, as the Conservatives are doing — it’s just kind of an extraordinary feat of political organization,” said Black, “So, that’s got to be respected and recognized.”
Running a big slate of candidates is important for any major party, but not just for receiving votes this election — the total number of votes cast for a party’s candidates across the province helps determine its finances for the next election.
This is a factor being felt by the Conservatives, who are starting well behind the NDP in terms of the amount of official subsidy they receive.
Under the BC Election Act, parties receive an annual public subsidy of $1.81 for each vote received in 2020.
The NDP reaped $1.6 million this year, while the B.C. Conservatives received $65,000.
Ironically, running more candidates this year will likely boost B.C. Conservative finances in a subsequent election — but it stretches party funds even thinner this time around.
Black said that the relatively small size of the Conservatives’ current subsidy would have an impact on advertising, hiring professionals to run campaigns and office rentals and dividing it between 93 ridings would be a challenge.
“The less money you have, the more difficult those things become, obviously,” said Black.
“What does a party do that has a lot of passion, and a lot of momentum, but doesn’t have as much money as their competitors?”
Black said a popular party that had tight finances had another resource.
“The most effective form of advertising is also the least expensive, effectively free, and that’s volunteers at your door, putting their body and their face and their personal commitment to any of the three parties here running,” said Black.
