Kootenay-Monashee New Democrat Steve Morissette says he’s not worried that the forthcoming provincial election will interefere with local government elections, despite the campaign periods overlapping.
Morissette said he and other MLAs began discussing the possibility of an election about a week and a half before it was called. He added Premier David Eby alerted them that the vote was going ahead a couple of days before the public announcement.
Morissette said the last two years haven’t been easy.
“Things have changed so much,” he said. “When we were elected, we weren’t being challenged on our economic status by the United States with tariffs. It’s really hurting our softwood lumber industry, manufacturing, and so on. So it’s really important for us to get a strong mandate and it’s never a bad time to go to the people and ask their blessing.”
Although the NDP has enjoyed a small majority in the BC legislature, Morissette said it has been challenging for the party to maintain its numbers. Joan Phillip, who died in August, had been voting from her hospital bed and Darlene Rotchford also voted from hospital within hours of giving birth, he said.
Morissette, who was mayor of Fruitvale before running for MLA in 2024, said he isn’t concerned about sending voters to the polls two weeks in a row for municipal and provincial elections, despite concerns raised by the Union of BC Municipalities.
“We underestimate the people of British Columbia [by saying] they can’t keep track of two elections,” Morissette said. “I think it’ll be fine. People will vote in the municipal elections and the following week in the provincial election and it’ll be good. People will get their voice and get to make their choices.”
Morissette said it was an easy decision to seek re-election. When he was elected the first time, he had already figured that he would commit to running at least once more. He called his experience as MLA “fantastic” and said he has enjoyed meeting people throughout the riding and from around the province.
He said his message to voters is that he believes his party is on the right path, pointing to government-funded housing projects either completed or now underway in Fruitvale, Trail, Rossland, Slocan, and Castlegar, as well as new child care centres in Casltegar, Fruitvale, and Trail. He is also proud of the Community Health Centre that opened in Trail last year.
“We want to keep up the momentum, keep that work going,” he said.
On at least one issue, however, Morissette does not see eye-to-eye with his own government. The proposed Record Ridge magnesium mine near Rossland has received a series of permits and could begin production soon. Morissette said he “absolutely supports” the efforts of the Save Record Ridge Action Committee, which took the government to court to try to force a full-blown environmental assessment. A judge declined to refer the matter back to the province for consideration. The committee is appealing the decision.
Morissette said he is against the project, but that disagreement has not caused him any discomfort within government.
“It’s been fine. I have the freedom to support what I want and that’s the beauty of our party. I’m not against mining per se. But this particular mine, where the ore is going to be trucked directly across the border and shipped to Asia, it’s going to create a handful of jobs and it’s going to deter attraction of the professionals we need in the area.”
Morissette will face Warren Mirko of the BC Conservatives, who we expect to speak to this week.
In 2024, Morissette won the riding with more than half the vote, defeating Glen Byle of the BC Conservatives and Donovan Cavers of the BC Greens. Morissette replaced fellow New Democrat Katrine Conroy, who did not seek re-election after serving continuously since 2005.
