James Moore is a former federal cabinet minister under prime minister Stephen Harper, and is a contributing columnist for CTVNews.ca. Most people who pay attention to politics develop a keen sense of the hypocrisies, the cynicism, and the guile that swirl around a lot of our politics. They happen in small and big ways almost daily. But B.C. premier David Eby’s decision to trigger an election campaign less than two years into his majority mandate — without having lost a confidence vote, with no confidence vote on the horizon; after having already passed his budget through the legislature; with only one piece of legislation before the B.C. legislature; while the official Opposition is without a leader; and while municipal elections are underway — is truly one of the more crass, opportunistic and absurd acts of political exploitation that we have ever seen. There is absolutely no need for a premier with an existing majority mandate, less than two years into it, to call an election other than to exploit the circumstances that Premier Eby thinks are to his advantage in this moment. The question is, do voters care? They certainly notice, but these are incredibly cynical times, and this decision will fortify the public’s distrust of politicians. One wonders if the voters will punish Premier Eby for exploiting his discretionary powers to abuse our democratic norms. The calculus for voters will likely be: do you like David Eby? If yes, vote NDP. If no, are you prepared to vote for the Conservatives? Are you prepared to vote for the Conservatives under Lorne Doerksen — someone they don’t know, who has never run for, or been elected to, the leadership of a political party, and whose party has gone through a shaky and tumultuous year of ugly leadership resignations, traumas and drama? Which is worse: the NDP’s status quo or the unknown of Lorne Doerksen and the alternative Conservatives? David Eby could be in for a major surprise as this campaign unfolds. Let’s look at the status quo. Popular opinion polls suggest Premier Eby’s government is unpopular with British Columbians. In a Liaison Strategies poll this week, 50 per cent of British Columbians say the province is going in the wrong direction. Only 36 per cent say we’re trending in the right direction. According to the Angus Reid Institute, 47 per cent of British Columbians say the NDP government is doing a poor job, and 50 per cent (including one in five NDP voters) say it is time for a change in government. B.C.’s spiralling debt Why? Well, let’s look at the B.C. government finances under the NDP. In each quarterly update over the past five years, the fiscal position has deteriorated without a plan — or even a hint of a plan — to stabilize the course we are on. Credit rating agencies are sounding the alarm that B.C. has the worst fiscal outlook of any peer jurisdiction. In its March 27, 2026, rating, Moody’s noted that British Columbia is hurt by a “weakening fiscal performance, driven by sustained growth and operating and capital spending driving large and structural deficits, rapidly rising leverage, and weakening debt affordability … and a lack of a clearly articulated medium-term plan back to balance, alongside macroeconomic and trade uncertainty.” B.C.’s fiscal position has spiralled out of control over the past five years. How bad? Consider this: B.C. became a province of Canada 155 years ago. It took 150 years for B.C.’s debt to reach $90 billion. It took just five years to double our debt from $90 billion to $180 billion between 2021 and 2026. Consequently, the debt servicing costs have more than doubled from $2.7 billion in 2021-22 to $6.3 billion in 2026-27. To put that in perspective, B.C. is now spending more on interest payments than it allocates to the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction. B.C.’s economy is grinding down. Real economic growth in 2026 was revised down to just 0.9 per cent two weeks ago from the 1.3 per cent expected in the budget. This will result in lower revenue, higher deficits and an even worsening fiscal position in next year’s budget – which is among the reasons Premier Eby would rather have an election now than have even more awful economic news rolling in next year as his government’s popularity wanes. The unemployment rate in August rose to 6.5 per cent — above the national average — and the province lost 26,000 full-time jobs, while gaining 20,600 part-time jobs. The forestry sector is reeling with mills closing or cutting back everywhere. New home construction is down 9.3 per cent, and home sales are down six per cent year over year. The population has declined for the first time ever with a 0.9% decline as people move away from the affordability crisis in the province and the toughening job market. Things are tough in B.C. and voters know it. And those voters are looking for an alternative to the status quo, and Premier Eby knows it. And that is why we are having an election. All the economic trend lines are going in a direction that demands a change in government. And the meltdown of the internal drama of the Conservative official Opposition has emboldened Premier Eby to think that he can rush a mandate renewal through the electorate with little hesitation. The appeal of Lorne Doerksen Time will tell if he gets away with it, but given the first couple of days of the campaign, I think Premier Eby might be in for an incredible surprise. Lorne Doerksen might be just what the doctor ordered. He is an experienced MLA who is a calm and competent adult from the interior (six of our last eight premiers have been from Vancouver) who could bring a down-to-earth charm to our politics that will be a welcome departure from the bombast and bravado we see too often. His first couple of days on the campaign trail have been excellent, and he has not been the Trumpian culture warrior dream opponent that Premier Eby thought he was going to be able to run against just a few days ago. From time to time, particularly in a circumstance of great anxiety and uncertainty about the world around us, boring and substantive and humble leaders are what the voters are looking for. They may very well be in the mood for a calm and decent person who is humble to surround himself with bright and capable support of high integrity and earnest intent to get B.C. through the challenges that we are facing. Premier Eby thought he was going to get one kind of election, but he may be in for one of the biggest surprises that we have seen in a very long time when voters compare the track that we are on with an unknown alternative who could have the right mix of humility, competence and character to meet the moment. This next month will all be about answering the question: Do we want to continue the path that we are on with Premier Eby and the fiscal mess that we are in, or are we prepared to take a chance on a new leader who we are just getting to know? Lorne Doerksen, the floor is yours. Voters are open to hearing your argument for change and to seeing whether you are ready for the awesome privilege and responsibility of being premier of British Columbia.
