BC United Leader suspends campaign, puts support behind BC Conservatives
BC United Leader Kevin Falcon dropped a bombshell Wednesday, moving to suspend his party’s campaign in the upcoming fall election.
The deal will see United Leader Falcon suspend his campaign with rumours that MLAs Ian Paton, Peter Milobar and Tom Shypitka, of Cranbrook, will run for the Conservatives, as well as Vancouver-Langara candidate Jaime Stein.
“I got back into politics because I wanted to build a bright future for my two daughters and for the next generation of British Columbians,” Falcon said in the statement.
“Today, I’m stepping back for the same reason. I know that the best thing for the future of our province is to defeat the NDP, but we cannot do that when the centre-right vote is split.”
Falcon encouraged all supporters of the BC United party to rally behind BC Conservative leader John Rustad to prevent another four years of disastrous NDP government.
“I’ve never doubted Kevin Falcon’s commitment to our province, and today, I applaud his decision to put B.C. first, as he’s done throughout his career,” Rustad said in the statement.
Nominations of BC United candidates will be withdrawn to enable the Conservative Party of BC to draw from United’s pool of incumbent MLAs and candidates, according to the statement.
Falcon was elected MLA for Surrey-Cloverdale in 2001, a position he held until 2013. Elected to the Legislature once again, Falcon now serves as the MLA for Vancouver-Quilchena and as the Leader of the Official Opposition.
