The Vancouver-Mount Pleasant riding is currently held by the NDP’s Melanie Mark.
Mark easily held the riding for the NDP when a by-election was triggered in 2016 after incumbent Jenny Kwan resigned her seat for federal politics.
In 2013: Incumbent Jenny Kwan crushed her B.C. Liberal opponent, 65 per cent to 18 per cent.
In 2009: Kwan easily defeated B.C. Liberal challenger Sherry Wiebe by over 7,500 votes, 64 per cent to 21 per cent.
History & Geography: Created in 1991 from the old Vancouver Centre riding, Vancouver-Mount Pleasant contains the Downtown Eastside, Mt. Pleasant, and Strathcona neighbourhoods. The riding has only elected NDP candidates since 1972, including former premier Mike Harcourt. Kwan was just one of two NDP MLAs to hold onto their seats in 2001. This is a safe NDP seat.
Candidates
BC Liberals – Conny Lin: A UBC addictions researcher and behavioral neuroscientist, Lin works for Fit Brains, a Vancouver tech company. Lin is an immigrant to Canada.
NDP- Melanie Mark: First elected in the 2016 byelection. Mark is the first First Nation woman elected to the B.C. Legislature. Prior to her election, Mark worked in the Office of the Representative for Children and Youth, and was a to deputy representative to Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond.
Greens – Jerry Kroll: CEO of Electra Meccanica, which is producing a one-person electric car and is supposed to hit the market early in 2018. Kroll is a marathoner, with 40 races to his name.
Communist Party of BC – Peter Marcus: There is still a Marxist-Leninist party in B.C. They are running six candidates in 2017.
Independent – Mike Hansen: Hansen has run as an independent candidate for Vancouver mayor several times.
YPP – Shai Jospeh Mor: Mor immigrated to Canada from Israel in 2002. He works in information technology as software developer and systems analyst. The “Your Political Party’ is running 10 candidates in 2017.
2017 Stats: Vancouver-Mount Pleasant
Population (2014): 58,041 (38th)
Population Deviation from Average: 9.3 per cent
Area: 13 sq km (80th)
Pop Density: 4,464.7 (8th)
Average Age: 39.8 years (54th)
English as Second Language: 37.26 per cent (27th)
Top 3 Second Languages:
Cantonese – 8.62 per cent
Chinese, n.o.s. – 5.27 per cent
Tagalog (Pilipino, Filipino) – 3.39 per cent.
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