The BC United Party is unexpectedly out of the electoral race. In a move that has caught many by surprise, Leader Kevin Falcon has capitulated and suspended his campaign. Under the deal between Falcon and BC Conservative Leader John Rustad, Falcon will not seek re-election. Some currently elected MLAs are also expected to switch over and follow their former party colleagues to seek BC Conservative nominations.Sadly for Falcon, he had little choice. In May, Falcon announced merger talks between the two parties had broken down, accusing Conservative Leader John Rustad of deciding to reject a reasonable offer aimed at preventing a vote split, and thereby risking another four years of Premier David Eby’s NDP government.At the time, Rustad said that multiple overtures to United had previously been rejected. Their opponents' offer of a non-competition framework would have unfairly benefited United in protecting incumbents in safe ridings in the north and the interior.The earthquake move must certainly have been tough for Kevin Falcon. but the polls and the community had spoken. The drama leaves some feeling betrayed, as they perhaps preferred to go through the hopeless exercise, only to split the non-NDP vote and thereby deliver an NDP MLA in their local district. There will be individuals who will make themselves infamous for a day through their recriminations. There will be a few in BC United who will be angry.Nevertheless the voter intention polls were the ultimate decider.Although it was a bold and dramatic move that surprised all the political pundits and policy wags, the community's voters had made the actual decision. They coalesced behind the BC Conservatives in defiance of the media's bias, shaping the future of the political landscape.I wrote months ago that summertime was going to be the battleground to see who would emerge with the political momentum. One Party had to lead if there was any hope of success in toppling the NDP. I predicted that voters would get behind the BC Conservatives, and they did. Apparently, even long-time Liberal donors said there would be no more money until paramountcy was clear. it is now obvious.Issues that resonate are the general cost of living (housing, groceries, transportation) and a loss of hope for the future that came under a dark cloud. The NDP was only offering more of the same.BC United was still making fundraising callsTuesday night and their political machines were still functioning while the two leaders finally met face-to-face at 9 p.m. They talked at length Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. Falcon used the word ‘gracious’ several times with respect to Rustad and his team.I previously predicted that BC United would be wiped out in the election, and there was a good chance of vote splitting in many ridings, permitting the NDP to come up the middle.Now that Kevin Falcon has confirmed what the polls have said, the leaders will have much logistical sorting to do. There will be no cakewalk. They will form a committee to review the logistics and likely political success of all candidates from both parties. However, people are not guaranteed to play nice and the whole thing may still blow up. As a starter, Falcon has cancelled all the nominations from his Party. In the voters' minds, they were already cancelled as none were going to be elected. The left's smears on Twitter (X) are in full swing. Among the electorate, it is now a battle over swing voters, of whom I believe many have had enough of the NDP. They see the consequences on the streets, with the tent cities and the drugs and have been battered at the grocery store and the gas station.The underlying issue of the SOGI curriculum (sexual orientation and gender identity) in elementary schools confirmed a philosophical orientation that parents did not support, so this secondary issue sealed the deal for coalescing behind the BC Conservatives, despite all the trash talk from the NDP and BC United.On the yet-to-be-announced final slate, BC Conservatives will have to earn their votes and run competent local campaigns. There also must be a respectful, thankful bow to Falcon, who saw the inevitable and acted. There is now renewed hope that the philosophy of Ed Broadbent can be buried, at least for a while.Falcon said that on John Rustad’s worst day, he would be a far better Premier than NDP David Eby on his best day. He also said we must keep sight of the big picture. BC is facing a bad situation. In eight short years, the NDP has doubled the provincial debt, yielding the largest deficits in provincial history, and tied to the worst outcomes ever seen in healthcare, crime, public safety and drugs. When queried, he said he has no job lined up in the private sector.There may be further broad policy reconciliations, such as the BC United idea of no provincial income tax on the first fifty thousand taxable income. This potential for policy alignment brings hope for a more unified and progressive political landscape.BC United will not contest this particular election, but the corporation will continue to exist as determined by its board of directors. It looks like all present MLAs running from either party and all candidates from either party will be subject to additional review. Eggs will be broken.In reaction, the NDP has become unhinged. Heather Stoutenburg, the BC New Democrats Provincial Director, wrote to supporters:"The BCUP just announced that they are suspending their provincial election campaign and joining forces behind John Rustad and the BC Conservatives. With election day in 52 days, Kevin Falcon's Party is no more. We now face a far-right party that would help those at the top get what they want, at your expense. Will you rush a donation today to help us prepare for a fight this October?"She then asked readers to 'chip in' $20 to fight the 'ultra-rich supporters of the BC Conservatives.' In contrast, BC Conservative leader John Rustad closed the joint press conference with the following:"We will close by once again thanking Kevin and his whole team in terms of this and how difficult this is. British Columbia used to be a place where people would come to build a future. Everybody here in this room, everybody in this province, whether they’re here five or six generations or longer, or they just came here; they came with the same hope to be able to build that future.... We are in a situation today where one in two young people are looking at leaving this province. It is a tragedy. That is our future, and is what British Columbia should be, and they shouldn’t be leaving this province. Instead, they should be looking at this province with hope and optimism.... That is what we want to restore, just common-sense change for all British Columbia."
