Following an extensive, province-wide consultation with its membership, the BC Liberal Party has announced that BC United has been selected as the name that will go forward to party members for a vote by the end of the year.

“BC United is a fresh alternative that expresses the party’s longstanding commitment to unity across a broad coalition of party members, as well as highlighting British Columbia front and centre in the name choice,” a BC Liberal Party news release noted.

Bringing the question of a name change to BC Liberals as part of a member-driven process was a key commitment made by BC Liberal Leader Kevin Falcon.

That process began at the party’s June convention, where two-thirds of delegates voted in favour of considering a new name. Through an online portal, suggestion boxes, text messages, QR codes and discussions as part of the Falcon’s summer tour, over 2,000 suggestions were submitted over a three-month period.

“I want to thank all the members who have taken part in the process so far, and I urge them to participate in the vote when the time comes later this year,” said Falcon. “I’ll personally be voting in favour of changing the Party name, and I’m hopeful our members do too.”

“This has been a process driven by members from day one, and among thousands of name-change suggestions, BC United emerged as the clear choice across the province,” continued Caroline Elliott, BC Liberal Vice-President. “We’ve long been a big-tent party, united together in our common vision for B.C., and it’s no wonder that so many members expressed this sentiment in their suggestions.”

“Of course, this is just one aspect of a comprehensive renewal process already well underway under Kevin Falcon’s leadership,” noted John Yap, BC Liberal President. “Whether it’s recruiting dynamic new candidates, developing innovative, outcome-focused policies, or genuinely connecting with British Columbians about the issues that matter to them, true renewal is something all of us are excited about.”

Kootenay East MLA Tom Shypitka told e-KNOW he approves of the suggested name change and will support it.

Should the name be approved by party members, it will be implemented strategically and responsibly, recognizing that the BC Liberals do not control the timing of the next election.

“We are going to be smart about this, and that’s been the commitment from the beginning,” said Elliott. “The NDP have broken the fixed election law before – calling a selfish snap election at the height of the Covid pandemic – and they won’t hesitate to do it again. If the vote passes, the name will be changed, but there will be flexibility to ensure the NDP don’t take advantage of the situation for their own political gain.”

The next step is to finalize the voting process, the details of which will be made available in the coming weeks.

As part of this process, every BC Liberal member will have the opportunity before the end of the year to vote in favour of changing the name to BC United or keep the existing BC Liberal Party name.

In the meantime, BC United has been registered with Elections BC as an alternate name for the BC Liberal Party.

Lead image: Kevin Falcon addresses a group of BC Liberal Party supporters during a visit to Cranbrook in 2021. During that visit Falcon stated his intention to change the party name in order to remove confusion about ties to the federal Liberal Party. e-KNOW file photo

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