The suspension of BC United鈥檚 election campaign left centrist voters in British Columbia 鈥渙rphaned,鈥� and a new provincial party under the Liberal brand is needed, says former federal cabinet minister Herb Dhaliwal.
Dhaliwal, who served in the House of Commons for more than a decade in multiple Liberal government cabinet positions, said Tuesday that he wants to revive a liberal party for those left politically homeless after the BC United collapse in favour of the BC Conservatives.
鈥淭here are lots of people, they鈥檙e not interested in voting for either, so they feel betrayed and they feel orphaned by what鈥檚 happened,鈥� Dhaliwal said Tuesday, referring to the BC Conservatives and the BC United Party.
He said he wants to build a new party for moderate and centrist voters under the name 鈥淣ew Liberal Party of BC鈥� in time for the election on Oct. 19, but Elections BC has rejected the name due to its potential to confuse voters.
Dhaliwal said in a written statement released Tuesday that the former BC Liberal Party that rebranded as BC United was doomed by a 鈥渂ackroom deal鈥� with the BC Conservative Party, leaving moderate voters without a 鈥減referred political choice on the ballot.鈥�
鈥淚 personally don鈥檛 think it鈥檚 good for British Columbia to have this, you know, extreme right and left,鈥� he said in an interview. 鈥淭his polarization of politics is not good for British Columbia or for the country.鈥�
Dhaliwal, who left his Vancouver-area riding in 2004, said Leader Kevin Falcon鈥檚 suspension of the BC United campaign 鈥渂etrayed鈥� supporters, and the province risks returning to a 鈥渄ysfunctional鈥� state of 鈥減olarizing right versus left combat.鈥�
鈥淢any times people have asked me to come back into politics and I鈥檝e said, No,鈥� Dhaliwal said. 鈥淏ut in this situation, where I think we鈥檙e going in really a wrong direction, I felt it was necessary for someone to try to do something about it.鈥�
Dhaliwal said he hopes Elections BC will allow a new party under the name 鈥淣ew Liberal Party of BC鈥� because Kevin Falcon鈥檚 BC United Party dissociated from the 鈥淟iberal鈥� brand when it changed its name.
Dhaliwal, through lawyer Joven Narwal, has asked Elections BC to reconsider the rejection of the name.
In a letter to the agency dated Sept. 13, Narwal told elections officials that adding 鈥渘ot associated with BC United鈥� or a similar phrase to the ballot could avoid 鈥渁ny conceivable confusion in the minds of voters.鈥�
Elections BC communications director Andrew Watson said Tuesday that the provincial Elections Act prohibits parties from registering if the chief electoral officer believes 鈥渋ts name is likely to be confused with a currently registered political party, a party that has a registration application currently pending, or a party that was registered at any time during the past 10 years.鈥�
Watson said the bracketed phrases proposed by those seeking to register the 鈥淣ew Liberal Party of BC鈥� to avoid confusion with BC United and the former BC Liberal Party still don鈥檛 make the cut.
鈥淚t鈥檚 really, really important that voters have no doubt about which party they鈥檙e voting for when they go to mark a ballot and that there鈥檚 no possibility for voter confusion,鈥� Watson said. 鈥淭hese rules have been in place for a long time in B.C. elections.鈥�
Dhaliwal said he鈥檚 hoping the party name issue can be resolved with the election looming in just over a month.
He declined to reveal who he would want to lead the new party, saying it would be 鈥減remature鈥� as they await word from Elections BC.
鈥淲e think this is best for British Columbia,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why we鈥檙e making an effort. You know, it鈥檚 better to try to do something then later on regret, why didn鈥檛 we do anything about it? Why didn鈥檛 we try it? We鈥檙e trying.
鈥淲e鈥檒l see what happens. If it works, it works. If it doesn鈥檛, well, that鈥檚 part of life,鈥� he said.
