All the candidates running in the riding of Saanich South squared off in a BC election debate live on C-FAX radio Tuesday morning.
Incumbent NDP candidate Lana Popham is challenged by Liberal David Calder, Green candidate Mark Neufeld, Libertarian Andrew McLean, and Vancouver Island Party candidate Richard Pattee.
In an odd twist, Liberal candidate Calder was once on Popham's side. He campaigned for her in the last provincial election and served on her riding executive. That situation came up during the debate when Calder told Popham "you and I share many values and you've been critical of my decision to run with the BC Liberals. You've questioned my values and my values haven't changed. What has changed is my view on effective representation. In order to advocate for the issues that we both care about in Saanich South, Saanich South needs an MLA in government."
Popham rejected the suggestion, "I'm not sure the BC Liberal values and the BC NDP values line-up. In fact, we have different priorities than the BC Liberals and, as a candidate, I would make sure that your opinions reflect that party that you're running for."
In another noteworthy exchange, Green Party candidate Mark Neufeld defended himself when Libertarian Andrew McLean asked him about a speech that’s drawn criticism, where Neufeld paraphrased civil rights leader Martin Luther King. "I needed to apologize for that because some people were hurt who didn't know me. And I need to do better.... there are a lot of people out there who are suffering from all kinds of racism. They are suffering from all kinds of issues because we aren't embracing the diverse society that we have. I feel really lucky that I've been reached out to by many leaders in the African community to help make the best of a blunder that I made so that we can draw attention to diversity in our communities."
Hear from all the candidates on a range of election issues by watching the full video in the C-FAX Provincial Election 2017 web feature.