There are a lot of things going on in this riding. NDP incumbent Bill Routley, who won by a 40.1 per cent-34.9 per cent margin in the 2013 election, is not running. The NDP’s riding president Ian Morrison quit after he was denied the nomination due to the party’s gender equity policy. He is now running as an Independent. The Green Party does quite well here (19.2 per cent in 2013, and it seems to have stolen 2,000 votes directly from the NDP’s 2009 vote totals).
The Greens have a well-known local activist as their candidate (she rose to fame as part of the Shawnigan Lake water controversy. This seems the third-most likely Green seat (or, alternatively, they may steal enough votes from the NDP to allow the BC Libs to win with well less than 40 per cent of the vote).
In 2009: First-time NDP candidate Bill Routley won this newly-created seat, defeating Cathy Basskin by over 3,000 votes, 48-36 per cent.
History & Geography: A Cowichan Valley riding has been on B.C.’s electoral map since the first general election of 1871. Known as Cowichan-Malahat from 1972-1986, and Cowichan-Ladysmith from 1991-2005, the riding has gone to the NDP in 12 of the last 15 elections. Longtime NDP opposition leader Bob Strachan held this seat from 1952 to 1975. The core of the riding is Duncan, but it stretches west to encompass all of Cowichan Lake, and includes the Highway 1 towns of Cobble Hill, Mill Bay, and Bamberton, stopping just south of Shawnigan Lake.
Candidates
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Liberals -Steve Housser: This is his second attempt at winning this seat. A former Victoria bureau chief for CBC, Housser was a journalist for decades before becoming an investment banker and fundraiser for Shawnigan Lake school. According to his website, Housser put himself through school as a logger and fisherman, and was active with the party’s riding association before becoming their candidate. He was also active in the Shawnigan Lake landfill controversy, protesting against the government is now hoping to join as an MLA.
NDP – Lori Iannidinardo: She has spent two decades running the Cowichan Community Kitchens initiative, working with low-income families on how to cook nutritious meals on a budget. Elected to the Cowichan Valley Regional District in 2008 as the director for Cowichan Bay.
Greens – Sonia Furstenau: One of the leaders in the fight against the Shawnigan Lake landfill, Furstenau is a Regional District Director, a teacher and social advocate.
Libertarian – James Robert Anderson: The Libertarian party is running 30 candidates, four times as many as in 2013. They have been running candidates in B.C. since 1986, but have never come close to winning a seat.
Independent – Eden Haythornthwaite: Former School Board Chair, she says she’s running as an “independent socialist.”
Independent – Samuel Lockhart: Owner of Lockhart Tactical, an online business that sells military and law enforcement gear.
Independent – Ian Morrison: The former president of the NDP riding association who was not allowed to seek that party’s nomination.
2017 Stats: Cowichan Valley
Population (2014): 59,232 (26th)
Population Deviation from Average: 11.5 per cent
Area: 1,685 sq km (30th)
Pop Density: 35.2 (57th)
Average Age: 46.3 years (18th)
English as Second Language: 8.22 per cent (83rd)
Top 3 Second Languages:
German – 1.47 per cent
Panjabi (Punjabi) – 1.03 per cent
Dutch – 0.94 per cent
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