Controversial anti-SOGI advocate Laura-Lynn Tyler Thompson has been named as the People’s Party of Canada candidate in Burnaby South.
Tyler Thompson is expected to be the first candidate to stand for election as part of Maxime Bernier’s new national political party.
“It is time for a new kind of politics. Maxime Bernier is the most courageous Canadian politician in decades,” Tyler Thompson said in a statement.
“We don’t need power-hungry politicians who court special interest groups, but rather impassioned defenders of our country who will put the concerns of the people first. The People’s Party of Canada has begun a movement that will restore integrity to our government.”
SOGI stands for sexual orientation and gender identity and is part of British Columbia’s education curriculum. Tyler Thompson has spoken out against SOGI education, saying it teaches “gender-fluid ideology to all children in British Columbia.”
Tyler Thompson has also been quoted as saying that schools teaching SOGI would be “letting all children know they can choose their gender” and that they’ll have gender boards “where they want to tell every little boy they can be a girl if they feel like they’re a girl.”
WATCH (aired Oct. 14, 2018): SOGI presents as civic election issue despite being a provincial matter
The date of the Burnaby South byelection has yet to be announced. NDP leader Jagmeet Singh is running in the riding, along with Liberal Karen Wang and Conservative candidate Jay Shin. The seat opened when Kennedy Stewart resigned as the MP to run in the Vancouver mayoral election.
Tyler Thompson ran for a position on the Burnaby school board last fall and finished 11th with 15,622 votes. Seven people won seats on the school board.
WATCH (aired Sept. 18, 2018): School board candidates run against LGBTQ resources in B.C. schools
The People’s Party of Canada also announced Jennifer Clarke as the party’s candidate in Nanaimo-Ladysmith. The riding opened up when MP Sheila Malcolmson resigned to run in the upcoming provincial byelection in Nanaimo.
“I am glad that we have two such principled and committed candidates in British Columbia. Laura-Lynn and Jennifer represent a growing number of Canadians tired of the Liberals’ big-government policies and the Conservatives’ unprincipled leadership,” said Bernier.
“The PPC is the best alternative to the established parties that have failed to address the issues that concern people. I invite all British Columbians to join our movement to send a clear message to Ottawa: we had enough of the LibCons.”