Businesses pay for attack ad targeting NDP leader John Horgan

With the B.C. provincial election still months away, a new political ad attacking NDP leader John Horgan is set to hit TV and social media.

A number of industry leaders, primarily from the natural resource and hospitality sectors, have launched an anti-Horgan ad that claims there is a schism within the party between environmental interests and union leaders.

“The party itself is not really sure what they want to support,” former CEO of the B.C. Chamber of Commerce John Winter said.

The campaign hearkens back to a 2013 campaign ad against then-NDP leader Adrian Dix that was paid for by business interests.

Global BC chief legislative reporter Keith Baldrey said the latest ad could prove to be a challenge for the current NDP leader.

“The problem John Horgan’s got is nobody knows who he is,” Baldrey said. “This ad is going to start running on a saturation basis on television and radio pretty soon and a lot of people who haven’t heard of John Horgan up until now will be hearing about him – basically for the first time – along very negative lines. That’s a challenge for him to meet in the days and weeks running up to the May election.”