Garry Begg of the NDP has been re-elected in Surrey-Guildford.
“This was an election about trust and about leadership,” Begg told the Now-Leader from his campaign office. “That is something that has been demonstrated well by the current government.”
“It was an election unlike any other that we’ve been involved in, in the sense that noone was prepared for an election during a worldwide pandemic,” he said. “It was interesting, it was thought-provoking.”
Begg said election night was a quiet one at campaign headquarters – pandemic and all – but that he looked forward to heading home and perhaps celebrating with a lone beer.
“I’m looking forward to going back to Victoria.”
The Liberals were hoping to take Surrey-Guildford back from Begg in what’s a relatively new riding for Surrey.
Four candidates were in the race. Begg scored another victory, while BC Liberal candidate Dave Hans had his eyes set on thwarting that. Independent Sam Kofalt also sought office in Surrey-Guildford and BC Green Party’s Jodi Murphy, who ran in the 2017 election, had another go.
Surrey-Guildford takes in a large part of what used to be Surrey-Tynehead, a provincial riding that was held by the B.C. Liberals since Dave Hayer was first elected in 2001, and then re-elected in 2005 and 2009.
After Hayer retired, his successor was Amrik Virk, a former Surrey RCMP inspector who, after his election to Surrey-Tynehead, in 2013, went on to serve as Liberal minister of technology, innovation and citizen’s services and before that, minister of advanced education.
Another cop of a different political stripe bumped Virk off the beat in 2017 when Begg, a 37-year RCMP veteran, took the riding with 8,467 votes to Virk’s 6,510.
“There’s a new sheriff in town,” Begg declared on election night in 2017.
The population of Surrey-Guildford is 58,037 and the average age of residents is 38.2 years, according to the most recent available figures.
As of Oct. 23, 6,124 vote-by-mail packages had been issued to registered voters in the riding. There are a total of 37,583 registered voters in Surrey-Guildford. Provincewide, 724,279 mail-in ballots have been sent out, and there are 3,485,858 registered voters. Mail-in ballots will be counted by hand, starting in 13 days.
Candidates:
We asked each candidate a simple question. “Why are you the best candidate in your riding?” We asked them to keep their pitch to 150 words. For those candidates who did not respond, we made every effort to tell you a little something about them or at the very least, send you in the right direction to learn about them.
Garry Begg
NDP
Through my many years of service in the community, as an RCMP leader and an MLA, I have gained a deep understanding of the strengths and challenges in Surrey-Guildford. I know my community, and my community knows me.
My approach is always collaborative and cooperative; I build bridges, not walls. The work that I have done in my community is based on my commitment to lift others up. It takes time and effort to fix 16 years of reckless BC Liberal neglect and I have been working hard to do just that. Much has been accomplished and we have much more to do.
I hope that Surrey-Guildford will give me the privilege to continue to serve and pave the way forward towards a stronger, more prosperous Surrey-Guildford – together.
Dave Hans
Liberal
We did not receive a response.
Sam Kofalt
Independent
I’m not a politician, but I am a very concerned citizen.
I’ve watched as the political parties have continually put the desires of corporations ahead of the best interests of the people of this province. I’ve witnessed scandal after scandal result in injustice after injustice. It’s time that the people of B.C. have a REAL choice and voice for the people of B.C.
With every vote I will put the people first, smaller class sizes with a better curriculum, higher pay, less tax and government interference into their lives and businesses. More freedom and a greater say into how the province is run.
By voting for me the people of B.C. will no longer feel hopeless as uncaring politicians hold them hostage to the interests of globalist technocrats. By voting for me the people will know and see what it actually means to be a servant of the public.
Jodi Murphy
Green Party
As an MLA, I will bring principled, evidence-based decision-making to government, and an unparalleled commitment to ensuring our future needs are met without unnecessary sacrifice of irreplaceable resources.
We need a government that thinks seriously about how today’s actions directly affect BC’s long-term future – not just about one rebate or one bridge they can give during their term.
Only BC Greens are addressing the biggest, most important issues with meaningful achievable plans that improve the lives of every British Columbian, including your kids and grandkids. You don’t have to choose between the economy and the environment; as Margaret Atwood recently said “I don’t know about you but my stove has two front burners.”
Only a BC Greens’ MLA can bring these ideas, this approach, and good influence to our government. Surrey-Guildford is not “just another Liberal/NDP seat,” your vote for me and the BC Greens can make a real difference.
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