Premier Christy Clark will face 7 challengers in the Westside-Kelowna byelection.
(CHARLOTTE HELSTON / iNFOnews.ca)
June 22, 2013 - 4:23 PM
KELOWNA - There will be 7 people challenging Premier Christy Clark in the byelection in Westside-Kelowna.
Nominations closed this afternoon at 1 o'clock. There are candidates running for the NDP, the B.C. Vision party, the B.C. Conservative party and four independents.
Clark will be up against New Democrat Carole Gordon, an elementary school teacher who lost to incumbent Liberal MLA Ben Stewart in the May general election.
The B.C. Conservative Party candidate is Sean Upshaw. He ran in Penticton for the Conservatives last month but lost to former Pentiction mayor Dan Ashton.
Jag Bhandari will be carrying the B.C. Vision party's banner into the fray.
The four independent candidates include John Marks, Silverado Brooks Socrates, Korry Zepik and Dayleen Van Ryswyk. Van Ryswyk was the NDP candidate in Kelowna-Mission who was asked to resign by leader Adrian Dix when racially charged comments about aboriginal people were found online.
Stewart gave up his seat to let Clark run in a safe riding after she led her party to an unexpected victory, but lost in her riding of Vancouver-Point Grey.
The Liberals won 49 of 85 seats in May, while the New Democrats won 34, the B.C. Greens, one, and one Independent.
Premier Clark officially launched her campaign today.
The advanced polls are open and voting day in Westside-Kelowna is July 10.
To contact the reporter for this story, email halexander@infotelnews.ca or call (250) 492-0331.
News from © iNFOnews, 2013