Kelowna West an uphill fight for the NDP
When NDP Leader John Horgan inadvertently came to Kelowna, he didn’t linger.
Bad weather in Revelstoke, his intended destination, forced him to land at YLW.
Coming in for a landing, he wouldn’t have been able to see any Liberal campaign signs as he flew. But he surely knew they were down there.
Everywhere.
There were 80 voting neighbourhoods in the riding of Kelowna West in the 2017 provincial election. The NDP won four of them.
In an apartment-rich area of Pandosy Street between Harvey Avenue and Cadder Avenue, along a stretch of Sutherland Avenue between Richter Street and Gordon Drive, and between Wilson Avenue and Lawrence Avenue near downtown Kelowna, the NDP beat the Liberals 321 votes to 271 votes.
The Liberals, under then-leader Christy Clark, won all the neighbourhoods in West Kelowna, and most of those in
the downtown part of Kelowna that forms the rest of the riding.
Overall, Clark drew 58.9% of the popular vote, the NDP got 25.5%, and the Greens polled 13.7%.
Of course, the NDP won the 2017 election, forming government in a partnership with the Greens. Clark resigned and a byelection was held in 2018.
Shelley Cook, a social activist who again ran for the NDP, said she’d been told many times on the byelection campaign trail that people wanted their representative to be part of government, not in opposition.
“I’ve heard again and again how important it is that Kelowna West has a representative in government who is focused on what’s best for people,” Cook said on Feb. 8, 2018.
But less than a week later, when the byelection ballots were tallied, the NDP’s share of the vote actually fell two points compared to the 2017 result, down to 23.5%.
“That argument,
‘We’re government and we can do all kinds of things for you’, I don’t think that resonates with people, based on the experience they’ve had with the NDP in the past,” Liberal winner Ben Stewart, a winery owner and land developer, said on election night after drawing 56.3% of the vote.
If there was one bit of good news for the NDP in that byelection, it’s that instead of winning only four neighbourhood voting areas as it had the year before, it won six, all of them in the City Kelowna.
After being diverted to Kelowna a week ago Saturday and stopping for a impromptu campaign visit with local candidate Spring Hawes, Horgan drove on to Revelstoke.
Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson and Green Leader Sonia Furstenau have not so far visited the riding.
People can check out the candidates for KelownaWest at a livestreamed all candidates forum Oct. 20 at 9 a.m. Find the livestream online at kelownachamber.org/news-policies/bcelection2020/
Ursa Major Gold, Silver & Coin will be in Kelowna on October 17th and 18th and Peachland on October 19th and 20th. You can bring your gold, silver, coins and Canadian paper money to the Kelowna Sandman Inn or the Peachland TNI Business Centre between 10am and 5pm each day. No appointment is required. Barry Dick is a precious metals buyer and President of Ursa Major Gold, Silver & Coin.
“Ursa Major has the unique advantage of dealing direct with a smelter” said Dick. “That allows us to cut out one or even two middlemen. Ursa Major purchases gold and silver from other gold jewellers and jewellery makers as well as the general public.” In terms of the US dollar, gold and silver prices appear low but the weak Canadian dollar means prices are strong.
Ursa Major analyzes your gold, silver, coins and paper money while you watch, with the process explained to you in detail. Coins with
and set aside from those with a ‘melt’ value. Silver items
are analyzed for hallmark
to contain gold will also be analyzed for hallmarks, and best of 3rd place in 1984.
“Nearly half of the world’s annual gold harvest comes from recycled gold. Energy costs are about $500 to mine a new ounce of gold where recycled gold is about $10 per ounce. That prevents a lot of diesel from being burned.” Gold and silver purchased at the show and later melted goes back into the market without incurring that environmental cost.
Out of fashion jewelry, single earrings, broken chains, unloved jewelry, charm