Columbia River-Revelstoke MLA Doug Clovechok announced on Thursday, Dec. 2, that he has stepped down as BC Liberal Caucus whip, and that he is now endorsing Kevin Falcon to be the next BC Liberal leader.

“We need a leader that has the knowledge, experience, and ability to unite us as a Party while taking the right steps to win new supporters,” said Clovechok. “Kevin will fight for rural B.C. — ensuring rural communities have strong economies and proper representation in the legislature.”

READ MORE: MLA Clovechok will not endorse a BC Liberal leadership candidate at this time

Clovechok cited Falcon’s “ability to appeal to voters in both rural and urban regions” as his primary motivation for backing Falcon.

Falcon previously served as Deputy Premier, Minister of Finance, Minister of Health and Minister of Transportation.

“In order to win the next election, our Party needs to be a big tent, welcoming voters from a diverse set of backgrounds and regions,” Clovechok said. “The only candidate that can achieve that and defeat the NDP in 2024 is Kevin Falcon.”

Clovechok is now one of four BC Liberal MLAs to endorse Falcon over the past week, following announcements from Coralee Oakes, Lorne Doerkson and Greg Kyllo.

“I’m excited to have Doug’s support,” Falcon said. “He’s a hardworking MLA and will be an important member of our team as we move forward.”

However, this comes shortly after Kootenay East MLA Tom Shypitka’s Nov. 8 announcement of his backing of Ellis Ross for B.C. Liberal Party Leadership.

READ MORE: Shypitka endorses Ellis Ross for Leadership of the B.C. Liberals

The B.C. Liberals will vote for their new leader between February 3 and 5, 2022.