In 2013: NDP incumbent Mike Farnworth won this riding for a fifth time defeating Liberal Barbara Lu handily (52 per cent to 35 per cent).
In 2009: Farnworth won this riding for the fourth time in five elections, defeating Liberal Bernie Hiller by over 3,000 votes, 55 per cent to 39 per cent. This is a safe riding for the NDP.
History & Geography: A descendant of the Coquitlam riding created in 1966, Port Coquitlam became its own riding in 1991, the same year Mike Farnworth was first elected as an MLA. He has held the riding in every election but 2001 (which he chose not to contest). The riding used to contain parts of north Coquitlam, but now has the exact boundaries of Port Coquitlam. The Liberals have had support near the northern border of Port Coquitlam, and the southern suburbs around Castle Park, but the rest of the riding has generally supported the NDP in the last two elections.
Candidates
Liberals – Susan Chambers: A small business owner and resident of Maple Ridge, Chambers is a long-time community volunteer and member of the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce.
NDP – Mike Farnworth: The opposition justice critic. Farnworth challenged Horgan for NDP leadership in 2014, and Adrian Dix in the 2011 leadership race. A former Port Coquitlam councillor, he was first elected in 1991, and served as Minister of Housing from 1997 to 2000. He did not run in the 2001 election, spending time promoting democracy in Iraq and the Balkans.
Greens – Jason Hanley: A computer scientist, he’s the founder Syllogistic Software and has an MBA from Wilfred Laurier University.
Libertarian – Lewis Clarke Dahlby: 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.
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BC Cascadia Party – Billy Gibbons: The Cascadia Party was founded in 2016. Its platform calls for a renegotiation of the constitution, calling the Provincial and Federal governments ‘corrupt.’ The Cascadia Party is running two candidates in 2017.
2017 Stats: Port Coquitlam
Population (2014): 60,813 (10th)
Population Deviation from Average: 14.5 per cent
Area: 35 sq km (62nd)
Pop Density: 1,737.5 (25th)
Average Age: 39.2 years (64th)
English as Second Language: 29.19 per cent (33rd)
Top 3 Second Languages:
Cantonese – 3.02 per cent
Chinese, n.o.s. – 2.26 per cent
Korean – 2.05 per cent
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