Horgan offers an early olive branch
NDP leader vows to work across party lines if he secures majority
B.C. NDP Leader John Horgan says many wretched years in opposition have convinced him that he'll still need to reach out and co-operate across party lines, even if he is successful on Saturday in securing ultimate control of the legislature with a majority government.
Horgan struck a conciliatory tone during an interview with
Postmedia News on Thursday, saying although he's asked voters for a strong majority to help him stick-handle through the COVID-19 crisis, he's unwilling to run a government that acts in the autocratic ways he experienced during three terms in opposition.
“Twelve miserable years in opposition, where we came forward with lots of good ideas that were thrown to the side, is what makes me know that if I have the opportunity to listen to people who have good ideas, I'm going to do that,” he said.
“If they have good ideas, we're going to embrace them. And we did that in the minority parliament. I'm confident that we'll do that in the majority parliament, as well.”
Horgan entered the election as the most popular premier in Canada, and successive opinion polls throughout the campaign have indicated he's on the verge of turning his 41-seat minority government into a much larger majority on Saturday.
However, Horgan has faced criticism for breaking his power-sharing deal with the Greens to call an early vote. He has also campaigned aggressively against his former allies to eliminate them from the electoral map so his party no longer requires collaboration to enact its agenda.
Horgan has been an MLA for 15 years, and during much of that time, he was a vocal critic of how majority governments centralize power in the premier's office and run as quasi-dictatorships, rejecting any ideas from MLAs from other parties because they don't need to consider any other opinions.
When given a similar opportunity, Horgan said he's confident he won't take the same path — or, in essence, won't become the kind of premier he hated.
“It really comes back to those experiences in opposition,” he said. “It's all about the people. And if someone has a good idea, that will advance the lives of British Columbians, I'm in.
“I've always been the same guy. I've maintained that the job description has been different. And the job description, going forward, as we come out from COVID, is going to be different from the minority parliament trying to get a lot of things done in a collaborative way. I'm not going to jettison collaboration at all. And I'm not going to jettison hard work at all. What I'm going to do is rise to the challenge.
“The circumstances are unprecedented. I'm hopeful that I'll be able to meet those challenges. But I don't know. I'm going do the best I can to continue being me.
It has served me well throughout my life.”
Horgan's opponents during the campaign have targeted his decision to call a snap vote one year ahead of B.C.'s next scheduled election, in a bid to grab power while voters are preoccupied with their health and well-being during a public health emergency.
Horgan said that, after almost five weeks of campaigning, it's not a decision he regrets.
“I felt that we needed to get the election behind us,” he said. “And now we're two days away, and I'm comfortable the decision was the right one.”
On Thursday, Green Leader Sonia Furstenau again urged voters to deny Horgan a majority, urging them to rally behind the Greens to ensure B.C. doesn't slip back into what she called a divisive two-party system. She has described Horgan as untrustworthy and undeserving of voter support, after reneging on the Green deal, but has stopped short of saying she would refuse to partner with him
again should the outcome on Saturday be similar to 2017.
B.C. Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson has called Horgan's early election decision selfish, and said his economic recovery plan better meet the needs of struggling businesses.
Horgan promised not to ignore B.C.'s business community if he secures a majority.
“I've worked well with the business community,” he said. “They would prefer that we cut all their taxes, they would prefer that there be no regulations, but they also understand that the initiatives we're bringing forward on housing, on child care, on health care, make B.C. a more attractive place
for professionals to come and put down roots. So there's a give and take on these questions. And I'm going to bring my values, that people are the key to the economy as we get out from underneath this.”
Ultimately, it will be up to Horgan to decide how to use any extra power the voters give him, and how much to temper his potential ability to govern by fiat.
“Listening is the key to success,” he said. “That's how I've lived my life. So I don't expect to change who I am, or how I govern or operate the province of British Columbia, based on a majority or a minority.”