B.C. has new ridings for the 2024 election. Here's a look at them - Action News
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British Columbia

B.C. has new ridings for the 2024 election. Here's a look at them

The Oct. 19 election in British Columbia will feature new electoral districts that increase the number of seats in the legislature from 87 to 93.

Number of seats in legislature increases to 93 from 87, as part of regular review by independent commission

The exterior of a legislature building with blue domes and a golden statue.
There are six new ridings that will be contested as part of the upcoming B.C. provincial election, as riding boundaries are reshaped due to population growth. (Ken Mizokoshi/CBC)

he Oct. 19 election in British Columbia will feature new electoral districts that increase the number of seats in the legislature from 87 to 93.

It's part of a regular process, done once a decade, as an independent commission looks at B.C.'s population growth and recommendsupdates to riding boundaries.

Here is a look at some of the new seats:

Vancouver

The biggest change in Vancouver is the creation of three seats from an area largely covered by Vancouver-False Creek and Vancouver-Fairview in the last election.

The new ridings areVancouver-Yaletown,Vancouver-South GranvilleandVancouver-Little Mountain.

The NDP'sBrenda Bailey, who won Vancouver-False Creek in 2020, is now running in Vancouver-South Granville.

A white woman with round glasses speaks at a podium.
NDP candidate Brenda Bailey will be standing in the new riding of Vancouver-South Granville, moving from Vancouver-False Creek. (Hunter Soo/CBC)

The NDP's George Heyman, who previously held Vancouver-Fairview, is not running in this election.

In Vancouver-Little Mountain, the NDP is represented by city Coun. Christine Boyle , while theB.C. Conservatives are running with former park board commissioner and mayoral candidate John Coupar.

The B.C. Conservatives have named former councillor Melissa De Genova as their candidate in Vancouver-Yaletown, going up against NDPcandidate Terry Yung, a former Vancouver police officer.

A white woman wearing a purple top speaks in council chambers.
Former Vancouver Coun. Melissa De Genova, pictured here in 2019, will run for the B.C. Conservatives in Vancouver-Yaletown. (Ben Nelms/CBC)

Burnaby-New Westminster

The area's seat count rises from five to six, with the newBurnaby-New Westminsterriding created from portions of surroundingridings Burnaby-Edmonds, New Westminster and Burnaby-Lougheed.

The area's ridings are now Burnaby Centre, Burnaby East, Burnaby-New Westminster,Burnaby North, Burnaby South-Metrotown, New Westminster-Coquitlam.

The NDP took all five previous seats comfortably in 2020 and the party has done well in the areain recent years.

All but one of the NDP incumbents are running for re-election. They includeRaj Chouhan, who is facing the B.C. Conservatives' Deepak Suriin New Westminster;Jennifer Whiteside in New Westminster-Coquitlam, running against the B.C. Conservatives'Ndellie Massey;and Anne Kang, who is running against the Conservatives' Dharam Kajalin Burnaby Centre.

Surrey

Surrey is gainingone seat,Surrey-Serpentine River, but also sees big changes to its district boundaries. Surrey-Green Timbers and Surrey-Whalley have been reorganized into two new ridings, Surrey City Centre and Surrey North.

Surrey-Serpentine River was created from parts of nearby districts, including Surrey-Cloverdale, Surrey-Panorama and Surrey-Fleetwood.

A man walks past a green sign that reads 'City of Surrey'.
Surrey, B.C., has seen some of its riding boundaries drastically reshaped as the city continues to grow in population. (Ben Nelms/CBC)

The NDP won seven of nine Surrey-area seats in 2020, picking up Surrey-Cloverdale, which had historically favoured the former B.C. Liberal Party.

All but two of the incumbent NDP candidates are running for re-election, with Surrey-Newton's Harry Bains and Surrey-Whalley's Bruce Ralston stepping aside.

A woman with white-blond hair is seen in profile as she talks into a mic.
B.C. Conservative candidate Elenore Sturko is one of the most high-profile ones running in Surrey. (Ben Nelms/CBC)

Former Surrey mayor Linda Hepneris running for theB.C. Conservatives in Surrey-Serpentine River, where she will facethe NDP's BaltejSingh Dhillonwhomade historyas the first RCMP officer to be allowed to wear a turban as part of his uniform and Independent James McMurtry.

High-profileB.C. United defector Elenore Sturkois running as aB.C. Conservative in Surrey-Cloverdale, where she will face the NDP's Mike Starchuk,Pat McCutcheonof the B.C. Greens and Judy Meilleurwith theFreedom Party of B.C.

Langley

Langley's two seats in the 2020 election have been split into three, with the creation ofLangley-Willowbrook,Langley-Walnut GroveandLangley-Abbotsford.

The NDP scored major victorieshere in 2020, winning both seats that had been held by the B.C. Liberals for decades.

Both incumbents Megan Dykeman and Andrew Mercier return, and are joined by former federal Liberal MP John Aldag, whoresigned from Parliamentin May to run for the B.C. NDP in Langley-Abbotsford, where he will faceHarman Bhanguof the B.C. Conservatives

Dykeman is up againstLangley Township Coun. Misty van Popta, running for the B.C. Conservatives, in Langley-Walnut Grove, while Mercierfaces the Conservatives' Jody Toor.

Langford

Greater Victoria's additional seat comes in the suburb of Langford, whereLangford-Highlandswas carved out mostly from Langford-Juan de Fuca, with the rest of that district renamed Juan de Fuca-Malahat for this fall's election.

The area is considered an NDP stronghold, with Langford-Juan de Fuca held by former premier John Horgan from 2009 to 2023.

Langford-Highlands will be contested bythe NDP'sRavi Parmarand Mike Harris of the B.C. Conservative Party.

Kelowna

A new electoral district,Kelowna Centre, was created from parts of three surrounding ridings: Kelowna-Mission, Kelowna West and Kelowna-Lake Country.

The latter two have also been renamed West Kelowna-Peachland and Kelowna-Lake Country-Coldstream to reflect other boundary changes.

A man and a boy cycle past an older couple sitting on a lakefront bench.
People enjoy their Sunday at Kelowna City Park in Kelowna, B.C., on Oct. 2, 2022. The southern Interior city has seen large population growth over the last five years. (Winston Szeto/CBC)

The area was traditionally a stronghold for the B.C. Liberals, which won all three seats comfortably in 2020. But none of the incumbents are running this year.

The candidates in Kelowna Centre are city councillor andRegional District of Central Okanagandirector Loyal Wooldridge, who is running for the B.C. NDP; Kristina Loewen for theB.C. Conservatives; and former B.C. United candidate Michael Humer, who will run as an unaffiliated Independent.

Gavin Dew, who ran for the leadership of the B.C. Liberals in 2022, is running for the B.C. Conservatives in Kelowna-Mission, where he will facethe B.C.NDP'sHarpreetBadohaland another former B.C. United candidate, Ashley Ramsay.