B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad gives a thumbs up after addressing supporters on the provincial election night in Vancouver, on Oct. 19, 2024. The Canadian Press/Ethan Cairns
B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad has survived a party leadership vote with the support of 71 percent of members following a months-long review with low participation.
The results, announced Sept. 22, saw only 1,268 members of the party’s 9,000-strong membership cast ballots, with Rustad winning in 78 of the province’s 93 party ridings.
“I believe the members have given me a mandate to lead and I believe British Columbians are hungry for an unapologetic common sense Conservative government. We will make it happen,” Rustad said in a Sept. 22 press release. “This process has localized democracy and allowed all members to not only vote in this crucial review, but share their concerns with me directly.”
The results of the review were revealed just hours before Rustad was scheduled to meet Conservative MLAs in Victoria on Monday evening to confirm whether he still enjoys their confidence as caucus leader.
The B.C. Conservative party constitution allows a leader to be removed if support falls below 50 percent.
Hours after the vote, B.C. Conservative MLA Elenore Sturko was removed from caucus. The party hasn’t yet publicly released a reason for the ouster. Sturko, a former BC United MLA before she joined the Conservatives ahead of last year’s provincial election, told reporters she was “blindsided” by her removal from caucus.
Rustad’s Tenure
A long-serving B.C. Liberal MLA and cabinet minister, Rustad was kicked out of the Liberal caucus in August of 2022 for retweeting a post expressing doubts on social media about human causation of climate change. In March 2023, Rustad became leader of the B.C. Conservative Party, which had been a fringe party for decades.
As the B.C. Conservatives rose in the polls, members of the renamed B.C. Liberals, now called BC United, left to join the Conservatives, resulting in B.C. United ceasing election operations during the 2024 election campaign and joining forces with the Conservatives. The Conservatives became the official Opposition after narrowly losing to the NDP in the October 2024 election.
His leadership has been defined by policies that oppose carbon pricing and support resource development.
During the 2024 election campaign, Rustad championed free speech for candidates, saying caucus members would not be subject to strict party discipline in votes. Rustad stood by candidates such as Brent Chapman who became targets for past remarks, however the Conservatives ousted others such as physician Stephen Malthouse for remarks on COVID-19 vaccines.
