A new party is taking shape in BC, aimed at filling a gap for voters.
Karin Kirkpatrick, who served as an MLA for BC United before it withdrew from the previous provincial election, created the new party called CentreBC.
Political Analyst Shirley Bond thinks this is a reflection on how some British Columbians feel after a polarizing election.
“There were two choices for voters, Independents were not elected.” said Bond.
“I certainly hear from people, especially those who are fiscally conservative, they are fiscally responsible, and they also have a social conscious. Many of those voters are struggling to figure out where they should cast their ballot.”
Bond added a concern is if this will capture new voters and fill that gap, or continue to split the vote on the right side of the spectrum, allowing the NDP to remain strong in BC.
She said there could be some interest for those already in politics to join the party.
“There are certainly elected officials, previous ones and future ones, who will be looking for a more centrist approach in our province, trying to move away from that very polarized partisan approach to politics.”
Bond said with any new party, it will take a great deal of work and effort to gain traction, adding there are still a number of years before the next provincial election.
She noted that time will tell if this is an effective and attractive option for some voters in BC.
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