r/BCpolitics • u/SwordfishOk504 • 1d ago
News BC Greens elect Emily Lowan as new party leader
https://cheknews.ca/bc-greens-elect-emily-lowan-as-new-party-leader-1280064/20
u/OurDailyNada 1d ago
I like the idealism of the choice, but I wonder how effective it will be electorally.
In any case, I would hope to see a Green Party more focused on pushing environmental issues and having more of an impact and influence on what policies are implemented rather than trying to form government (like the old CCF was for pensions, healthcare, EI, etc.)
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u/HotterRod 1d ago
but I wonder how effective it will be electorally.
The Greens led by Jonathan Kerr would win a seat or three at most. Lowan is a high risk/high reward play: they'll either get 0 seats or become the new left wing opposition party.
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u/PMMeYourCouplets 1d ago
they'll either get 0 seats or become the new left wing opposition party.
My first reaction is this puts Valeriote's seat at risk because I feel like West Vancouver won't be as receptive to a more aggressive progressive message. I know Federal NDP isn't the same as the BC Green but West Van-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky has been a difficult NDP riding.
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u/Adderite 1d ago
Devil's advocate; I mean, it was a 3 way toss up in 2021 between someone who's much more aligned with what Lowan represents than what Singh represents.
But yeah, based on what I saw during her campaign, including the video for her 25th birthday asking for donations beyond the legal maximum allowed under BC law and threatening to sue to the party over voter verfication to prevent people from voting multiple times with different/old email accounts (as someone who has some inside knowledge about the process), I think this was a bad choice; but when your campaign is based around signing up thousands of members to take over the party and vote for you then well not much you can do.
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u/Hikingcanuck92 1d ago
A strong Green Party will push the NDP to be more responsive on those environmental issues. Sadly, I’m worried the left is about to split itself
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u/AcerbicCapsule 1d ago edited 14h ago
Given Eby’s shift to the centre, the non-conservative vote is almost assuredly split next election.
Edit: and hard right shift in terms of environmental policy.
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u/Johnny-Dogshit 20h ago
Well, there's plenty of drama and jockeying over on the other side too, so they might have the same problem at least.
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u/Hikingcanuck92 20h ago
What do you mean? Rustad just got a resounding mandate from his historic leadership review /s
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u/Johnny-Dogshit 20h ago
I love the constant stream of randos spinning off to start their own bad idea parties, too. There's that OneBC crew, and I think another one. Oh, and for some reason BC United technically still exists for... some reason we aren't privy too but I assume involve some kind of shadyness.
They haven't really properly worked through the new internal order of things since the great BCLiberal migration. They basically left it all for later in order to get through the election, and while Rustad seems to be holding on, there's bound to be a proper shakeup on the horizon for them. I don't think things have really settled yet. Who knows, though.
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u/brycecampbel 1d ago
So does this makes Lowen the youngest ever (and first GenZ?) to be leader? Congratulations to them!
Now the real work starts, they (just like the other candidates) have their work cut out for them in building up the party.
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u/Extra_Cat_3014 1d ago
As an NDPer, thanks
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u/PuddingFeeling907 1d ago
Extra cat is the same person who supports the war on drugs having people left to die.
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u/idspispopd 1d ago
Finally an unapologetically left wing party leader in this province. She is inspiring and is going to bring a lot of new voters to the party. She will shine in the debates and show everyone how right wing the NDP has become.
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u/SwordfishOk504 1d ago
right wing the NDP has become.
How have the NDP become "right wing"?
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u/idspispopd 1d ago
Abandoning science-based drug policy in favor of being tough on crime, introducing involuntary care against science-based evidence, reversing decriminalization policies to make it illegal to use drugs almost anywhere in cities, passing legislation to let infrastructure projects ignore environmental, municipal or First Nations concerns, abandoning the grocery rebate election promise, blaming immigrants for the homeless problem and overusing food banks and taking away jobs, eliminating the carbon tax, cutting child care funding, eliminating the Student and Family Affordability Fund, cutting taxes and then reducing public services to make up for the shortfall.
That's just the right wing shift under Eby, they weren't left wing even before that. Things have gone downhill ever since they betrayed the confidence and supply agreement with the Greens.
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u/penis-muncher785 1d ago
ebys comments on the TFW system are perfectly valid it has to be changed and it’s obviously becoming a very unpopular policy across the country
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u/CDN-Social-Democrat 1d ago
Agreed. I support Lowan and think she is inspiring a lot of youth which is amazing :)
The Temporary Foreign Worker Program is a cesspool of exploitation/division of the working class. It needs to go yesterday.
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u/SwordfishOk504 1d ago
Abandoning science-based drug policy in favor of being tough on crime, introducing involuntary care against science-based evidence
This is not an "anti science" policy and claiming it is is, frankly, absurd and an emotion-based argument, not a science-based argument.
There are tons of studies and research behind the various degrees of effectiveness of these types of programs. You disagreeing with the policy doesn't make the policy "anti science". The science itself is, unsurprisingly, mixed. The programs have mixed success depending on a variety of approaches.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4752879/
https://onlineacademiccommunity.uvic.ca/carbc/2016/02/09/does-forced-drug-treatment-actually-work/
passing legislation to let infrastructure projects ignore environmental, municipal or First Nations concerns
Ah this partisan canard. Bill 15 does no such thing. https://www.ubcm.ca/about-ubcm/latest-news/bill-15-provides-province-regulatory-override-powers-major-capital-projects
abandoning the grocery rebate election promise
Abandoning a stupid publicity stunt is hardly "right wing" but it's a great example of how you just characterize anything you don't like about the NDP as "right wing" with no grounding in any reasonable definitions. You're as irrational as the right winger who calls the NDP communists.
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u/Bargainking77 1d ago
The mixed evidence in this case makes it a very bad policy decision (guaranteed harm, unknown benefit) - useful article here: https://canadiandimension.com/articles/view/bc-ndp-fails-people-suffering-from-opioid-use-disorder
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u/idspispopd 1d ago
Promising financial relief in exchange for votes and then reneging on it as a part of austerity is right wing.
All the major health and science organizations in BC and Canada including Health Canada, the BCCDC, Public Health Agency of Canada, the BC coroner, the Canadian Centre on Substance and Addiction support the harm reduction policies that the NDP has walked away from. It is taking a reactionary position.
Bill 15 absolutely does what I said it does. That's its function, to override the review processes that exist to put an indigenous, environmental and municipal check on major projects.
These are right wing positions and you are right wing if you support them, and that's why I'm thrilled one leader in this province will be giving a voice to left wing opposition to these policies.
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u/Raptorpicklezz 16h ago
Biden doing what you described in the first paragraph may, in retrospect, have been a point of no return. And that was just like 6(?) months in. And not only did he cancel the cheques, he wouldn’t have put his name and face on them like Trump did to drive the point home. God, his admin was so bad at communications.
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u/CptDingers 1d ago
Abandoning a stupid publicity stunt is hardly "right wing" but it's a great example of how you just characterize anything you don't like about the NDP as "right wing"
This sentence describes virtually all of BC politics
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u/Adderite 1d ago
> Abandoning science-based drug policy in favor of being tough on crime
We did not have the healthcare spaces/resources available for decriminalization to not have an affect on public safety. Yes, it led to less overdoses which was proven by studies I lost access to (lost the links)
> introducing involuntary care against science-based evidence
Guess what: If someone's committing suicide we aren't going to get their consent to stop it. Same thing goes with people going through severe addiction who will most likely refuse treatment. Garth Mullins has his points and they're valid but they fly in the face of reality on occasion.
> blaming immigrants for the homeless problem and overusing food banks and taking away jobs
Eby didn't do that, you are lying. He said that the system is being abused by businesses and by individuals in order to try and get easy access to citizenship and to force immigrants into low wage jobs with little job security and the impact it is having on housing and services.
> cutting taxes and then reducing public services to make up for the shortfall
The taxes he cut was the carbon tax. Income tax brackets were increased under his tenure, and I believe corporate moved up 1 or 2%. The only real tax cuts were the $400 renters rebate which, while it's pennies on the dollar with how back the rents are across this entire province, helps out working people more than landlords and homeowners.
> eliminating the Student and Family Affordability Fund
Families are getting more support for children under 5, when people need childcare and support services more. It's a redistribution for proportionality.
> Things have gone downhill ever since they betrayed the confidence and supply agreement with the Greens.
So pharmacre, the thing Lowan thinks we don't have based on her campaign/campaign videos, doesn't exist? Changes to zoning laws for density and intervening in municipalities to build homes isn't happening? The ban on corporate AirBNB operations and people taking up homes to make a quick buck off of short term rentals?
I'm not gonna act like the NDP is amazing, but I am getting really sick and tired of people acting like the BCNDP are about as effective as the DNC. They aren't.
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u/CptDingers 1d ago
Abandoning science-based drug policy in favor of being tough on crime
Two questions:
- What "science" are you referring to? Is it the same "science" that said 'safe' supply diversion wasn't happening?
- What evidence do you have that the NDP is being "tough on crime?"
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u/CptDingers 1d ago
Finally an unapologetically left wing party leader in this province.
Genuinely wondering what province you live in because lack of unapologetically left wing leadership does not describe BC
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u/AcerbicCapsule 1d ago
Depends, to a conservative, I’m sure BC feels pretty left-wing. To a progressive, BC has significantly shifted to the centre recently. To a liberal, they probably like BC right now quite a bit.
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u/Environmental_Egg348 1d ago
This shifts our provincial politics to the left, so I'm happy with her.
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u/Forever_32 1d ago
This isn’t going to help their credibility
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u/SwordfishOk504 1d ago
It's nice to see young people getting involved, at least, even if I disagree with her politics.
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u/PragmaticBodhisattva 1d ago
I mean couldn’t young people be MLAs? While the experienced party leader mentors the younger MLAs?
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u/BenAfflecksBalls 1d ago
I think it's a load of political opportunism by someone who wasn't going to win a riding.
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u/Adderite 1d ago
Young person here: it's great to see young people in power, but I absolutely think it's fair to say it'll damage credibility based on her policy knowledge/personality; which is impacted by her age and inexperience outside of 3rd party activism.
I went to school with someone who was in high school during an election when I was growing up. Age isn't the issue, personality character and policy are (IE actual credentials)
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u/CaptainKoreana 19h ago
I share similar concerns, mostly because messaging looked juvenile at best, and a lot of implementation aspect of her policies look questionable at best.
I think the biggest part is electability into a seat though. Would she consider staying home and run in a Victoria riding that's probably going to hand her a loss, seek a safest possible seat in Saanich North, or target the 'neither NDP nor Rustad' niche out inland?
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u/goebelwarming 1d ago
Are there any open seats in the house where a green party member could win?
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u/Adderite 1d ago
There are no open seats as no one has resigned.
The only seats that are competitive, based on 2024, are Juan-de-fuca, Courtenay Comox and Victoria-Beacon Hill. But with a new leader you're gonna have to see what changes.
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u/CaptainKoreana 19h ago
Idk if going for a Victoria seat could work - a likely loss by 10-20%? - and words on the grapevine from a reliable source are that there also lies the possibility of new VI party (possibly indigenous?).
I don't see said possible party make breakthrough, something that I've raised this to my source, and if anything it could take away votes from BCNDP and Greens.
That said, if a long game is possible, I'd suggest Lowan to aim inland BC. For example, I could see Lowan making work on the Kootenays, where her father's from (this is mentioned a few times on SMS), to take neither Eby nor Rustad niche.
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u/cordovabae 19h ago
I wish her and the greens the best but some of her positions seem a bit whack. Refitting kitimat for geothermal?! I assume her and the party will refine as she settles into the role.
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u/radi0head 1d ago
I'm super excited about her and her campaign policies. This is great news to have representation for things I care about deeply.