A few months ago, it would have been hard to imagine that British Columbia would have been part of Justin Trudeau’s red wave.
But last week’s election proved to be a resounding win for Liberal campaigners in B.C.
“I was surprised,” said B.C. campaign co-chair Bruce Young. “We hadn’t won a seat outside the Lower Mainland since Len Marchand and Iona Campagnolo in ’74.”
Trudeau kicked off his campaign in B.C. and continued to show his love for the province during a dozen campaign stops.
READ MORE: Justin Trudeau responds on Facebook to B.C. woman’s letter
“A number of people and pundits were saying maybe he should be in Ottawa for the start of the election campaign, and I think that that set the tone right out of the gate,” said Young.
Trudeau famously highlighted his B.C. roots in an ad that showed him climbing Grouse Mountain.
“All these connections to B.C. have always been there for him,” said SFU geopolitical expert Joshua Labove. “Now it was a great opportunity obviously to make use of them and call these things into play.”
READ MORE: 4 promises Justin Trudeau made to B.C. voters before election day
For Young, the Grouse Grind ad was a risk that ended up paying huge dividends.
“Of course we were nervous,” said Young. “We were sending him up nature’s Stairmaster and it’s not an easy hike. When that ad started to run, it was like Justin Trudeau was here every day.”
With any campaign comes promises, ones the prime minister-designate will have to live up to if he wants to stay in B.C.’s good graces.
-With files from John Hua
Comments