Falcon says some supporters left party
Finance Minister and deputy premier Kevin Falcon unveiled a fascinating revelation Monday afternoon, telling reporters that a “handful” of his supporters from the provincial Liberal leadership race have now gone to the upstart B. C. Conservative Party.
“There’s probably a number of my supporters that may have done that and I’m not entirely surprised,” said Falcon.
“Some of them had expressed to me that they were working on my [ leadership] campaign on the expectation that I would win and that if I didn’t win they would have to see what happened before they made their decisions.”
Falcon said the key issue boils down to the Liberal/ Conservative dynamic of the B. C. Liberal coalition: “They [ those who have left] have got strong Conservative/ Tory connections and they were upfront about that so I can’t be critical.”
Implied in that remark is the warning that was issued by some during last year’s leadership race, that a win by federalLiberal- leaning Christy Clark would lead to a fracturing of the party’s coalition.
Falcon’s comments came Monday after his former supporter Rick Peterson announced he had joined the provincial Conservatives as deputy chair of that party’s finance committee.
“I’m honoured and thrilled to join the B. C. Conservatives and work toward building a broadbased, progressive and conservative team that provides a common sense alternative for all British Columbians,” Peterson said in a press release.
“John Cummins is providing the principled and focused leadership that free- enterprise supporters in this province are seeking today, and I am very much looking forward to working with him and supporting his efforts.”
Peterson’s departure, and Falcon’s comments that more of his supporters may have also left, demonstrates the depth of the problem faced by Premier Christy Clark and the Liberals, who trail in the polls in large part because of a vote split on the right. In recent days, Clark has courted the Conservative wing of the coalition, releasing photos of a hockey summit with Prime Minister Stephen Harper, replacing her chief of staff with Tory strategist Ken Boessenkool and hiring Harper’s former press secretary, Sara Macintyre.
On Monday, Falcon signalled those moves may just be the beginning.
“What I hope to do is demonstrate that this premier, this minister of finance and this government intends to respond to things in a manner that will bring home some of those people that have decided to support another party,” he said.