B.C. election 2017: Nechako Lakes riding

In 2013, the incumbent Liberal MLA John Rustad defeated NDP challenger Sussanne Skidmore-Hewlett by nearly a 2 to 1 margin (53 per cent to 27 per cent).

In 2009, Rustad defeated NDP candidate Byron Goerz by over 1500 votes (56 per cent to 35 per cent).

History & Geography: A large rural riding that spans the centre of the province, Nechako Lakes is a descendant of the old Omincea riding, which the Social Credit party held for 40 years, except for the 1972 election. The main corridor of the riding is Highway 16 from Vanderhoof to Houston, but goes as far north as Bulkley House, and far south as Eutsuk Lake. The area between Vanderhoof and Fort St. James has voted for the Liberals by 5-to-1 margins in recent elections, while the NDP has traditionally held support in Burns Lake.

Candidates

Liberals – John Rustad: Appointed Minister of Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation in 2013, Rustad was first elected in 2005. Before entering politics, he was a school board trustee and worked in the forest industry, owning Western Geographic Information Systems Inc.

NDP – Anne Marie Sam: Nak’azdli Whut’en councillor, Sam represented BC’s First Nations on the technical review of the province’s mining code following the Mount Polley disaster. She served as a school trustee for SD 51 from 2011-14.

Libertarian Party – Jon Rempel: 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.

Greens – Douglas Gook serves as a director of the B.C. Environmental Network and Spirit Dance Cooperative Community. He’s been a long-standing opponent of the Mount Polley mine project.

Independent – Al Trampah: Trampah’s campaign has a very low profile.

2017 Stats: Nechako Lakes

Population (2014): 27,692 (85th)
Population Deviation from Average: -47.9 per cent
Area: 73,797 sq km (4th)
Pop Density: 0.4 (84th)
Average Age: 39.4 years (60th)
English as Second Language: 11.68 per cent (62nd)

Top 3 Second Languages:
German – 3.89 per cent
Dutch – 0.69 per cent
Panjabi (Punjabi) – 0.60 per cent