Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

Are you considering a run for leader of the BC Greens? ‘I’m solely focused on the work ahead in this session and representing my constituents’, he responded

BC Green Party leader Andrew
Weaver preparing to step down

While today's announcement from Green Party leader Andrew Weaver indicates he'll be stepping down from that role, Weaver says he will continue until a successor has been chosen by the party’s membership.

Sat Harwood, chair of the Green Party’s Provincial Council stated:

We will miss him as our leader, but his legacy is part of every British Columbian who values clean water and clean air. He is leaving the B.C. Green Party well positioned to offer British Columbians a unifying and fair, sustainable and equitable option when they go to the polling station in 2021”. 

She continued, “I expect the leadership contest will culminate at the party’s 2020 convention to be held in Nanaimo from June 26-28, but details regarding the leadership contest, including a launch date, will be released in the coming weeks and months as they are approved by Provincial Council.”

Olsen, as many of you know, is a regular contributor to Thoughts on BC Politics and More. This afternoon I asked him about his experiences, in the Green Party, under Weavers leadership.

He responded saying, “I’ve worked closely with Andrew over the past six years. He’s moved the bar for the BC Greens over that time We’ve gone from a party on the outside of the political debate in our province to right in the middle”.


I’m thankful for the work he has done to raise the conversation on climate change in British Columbia, culminating in the CleanBC program”.

This was not an easy decision for him and now the party will have to work toward selecting another leader”.

So, who may or may not be considering a run for leader? 

Following the 2013 provincial election in the riding of Saanich North and the Islands, where he lost by just 379 votes to the NDP’s Gary Holman, Adam Olsen served as the party’s interim leader until the election of Andrew Weaver. Then in the subsequent 2017 election, Olsen went on to win the riding, taking it from the incumbent by a resounding 4,000+ votes.

Saanich North and the Islands
Green Party MLA Adam Olsen
Before that however, Adam was a former two-term Central Saanich Councillor, as well as a small business owner.

I asked the obvious question ... ‘are you considering a run the role as leader of the BC Greens ...’

I’m solely focused on the work ahead in this session and representing my constituents”, he responded.

Conversations about my future will happen in due course”, he went on to indicate.

Not a YES ... Not a NO.

A look at his MLA website indicates that ... the result of two decades in the service and communications sectors is the valuable experience in building relationships, connecting people, problems, ideas and solutions.

Many may already be pointing out to Adam that experience will be what is needed for the next leader of the Green Party, but as Adam stated to me ... my future will happen in due course ...

Stayed tuned.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Interfor Moves Headquarters Out of BC as Forestry Crisis Continues

NDP policies are driving businesses out of B.C., and the forestry industry just suffered yet another calamity. Interfor, a BC company founded more than 60 years ago and now one of the world's largest lumber producers, is moving its headquarters from Burnaby, BC to Atlanta, Georgia. As BC’s forestry sector faces mill closures and mounting uncertainty, this move is another warning sign that the crisis is deepening and conditions are fatal. “This is the NDP’s record: endless job losses with no hope in sight for the forestry sector,” said Ward Stamer, Shadow Minister for Forestry. “Interfor still has three mills in BC which are now in serious jeopardy, and it is likely we will see even more companies pull out of BC. The NDP government is suffocating the forestry industry with high taxes, excessive regulations, and permitting delays, while DRIPA has made it impossible to plan for the future.” “Decisions like this are sadly not surprising given the NDP’s indifference if not hostility tow...

Okanagan Farmers Face NDP-Created Water Crisis ~~ BC Conservatives

Okanagan farmers are facing a water crisis as government-imposed restrictions threaten to kill their crops and destroy one of B.C.’s most important agricultural industries. In perhaps the most water-rich province in the country, our farmers have been left high and dry by the NDP government. For nine weeks, Okanagan and Shuswap farmers have proposed solutions, only to be met with NDP foot-dragging. Now forest fires have come to these regions as they are simultaneously reckoning with a water crisis that has been made worse through years of government inaction. Vernon-area farms have lost 70 percent of their water, while Kelowna and Summerland growers face severe restrictions. This situation is unacceptable and cannot continue. Ian Paton, Shadow Minister for Agriculture, said the NDP is once again forcing farmers to pay for its own failure to plan. "Farmers and ranchers must be listened to when decisions affecting their livelihoods are made, and under the NDP, they aren’t," said...

NDP Hypocritically Admits Natural Gas Power Was Needed All Along ~~ BC Conservatives

The NDP just got caught buying back the exact kind of power plant it spent years telling British Columbians they didn't need. The NDP government announced today that BC Hydro is purchasing the Island Generation natural gas facility in Campbell River, an admission that its electrification-only energy policy was never realistic. The 275-megawatt plant was originally privately owned yet kept to a minimal backup role under the NDP, operating just 15 days a year on average. Now, with demand outpacing what the NDP's plan can support, the government is spending taxpayer funds on the very gas capacity it once treated as obsolete. "You cannot electrify everything and pretend natural gas doesn't matter," said Larry Neufeld, Shadow Minister for Energy.  "Buying back a gas plant they once wrote off is proof their own plan couldn't keep the lights on. It's a step towards more energy reality, but the government needs to go further and scrap the impending province-w...

Labels

Show more