City councillor Donovan Cavers announced today, Sept. 8, that he is running for the Green Party's nomination in Kamloops-South Thompson for the provincial election May 9, 2017.

(BRENDAN KERGIN / iNFOnews.ca)

KAMLOOPS - Kamloops city councillor Donovan Cavers is running for the B.C. Green Party nomination in Kamloops-South Thompson.

He will be challenging B.C. Liberal incumbent and Minister of Transportation Todd Stone.

At a media conference today, Sept. 8, Cavers said people in the riding are looking for a change.

“Kamloops and B.C. deserve better,” he said. “For over 15 years we’ve had the same party with the same old ideas.”

Cavers says he's unaware of anyone else who plans to run and the nomination period ends this week. No one else has announced their intention to run against Cavers and his twitter bio says he is a B.C. Green Party candidate for the upcoming election.

Cavers also took aim at the Ajax Mine — which he firmly opposes — and the current provincial political system which he says is essentially a two-party system. He would like to see the Greens become a strong third voice.

The B.C. Liberal party has collected donations from corporations while the B.C. NDP receive money from unions, Cavers said, and he’d like to see changes to that system.

“Provincial donation rules are so archaic that political parties in B.C. can accept donations not just from out of province but out of the country,” he said. “Only individual British Columbians should be allowed to donate to political organizations in our province."

As he is a sitting city councillor, Cavers said he will take a leave of absence from his municipal position during the provincial election campaign.

He added he would cover the cost of a municipal byelection if he wins, something Mayor Peter Milobar has said he will not do if victorious.

Cavers will be facing Stone — who has already received the Liberal party’s nomination — and potentially Nancy Bepple from the B.C. NDP, though she has not officially received her party’s nomination. Beat Klossner is running for the Communist Party. 

Cavers was introduced by Dan Hines, the likely nominee for the Green Party in Kamloops-North Thompson, though no official announcement has been made. Barbara Nederpel from the B.C. NDP and Peter Kerek of the Communist Party are running for their respective parties in the riding. The B.C. Liberal Party have not selected a candidate yet, as both North Shore Business Improvement Association executive director Steven Puhallo and Milobar have both announced they are seeking the nomination.

– This story was updated at 2:46 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 29, 2016 to say Cavers had been acclaimed.

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