90-786: The Green Party of British Columbia , or simply the BC Greens , is a provincial political party in British Columbia , Canada. It was founded in 1983 and is based in Victoria . The party won its first seat in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2013 provincial election . The Green Party of BC promotes the principles of participatory democracy , sustainability , social justice , respect for diversity, ecological wisdom, and nonviolence . The first Green Party in North America
180-621: A humid continental climate with widely variable precipitation. For example, the average daily low in Prince George (roughly in the middle of the province) in January is −12 °C (10 °F). Small towns in the southern interior with high elevation such as Princeton are typically colder and snowier than cities in the valleys. Heavy snowfall occurs in all elevated mountainous terrain providing bases for skiers in both south and central British Columbia. Annual snowfall on highway mountain passes in
270-783: A bribery scandal involving Premier Glen Clark . With the NDP's ratings flatlining, Clark resigned in August 1999, and Deputy Premier Dan Miller took over as caretaker premier until Ujjal Dosanjh was elected his permanent successor in February. Dosanjh was not, however, able to restore the party's public image, and the BC NDP suffered a resounding defeat at the hands of the British Columbia Liberal Party (BC Liberals), led by former Vancouver mayor Gordon Campbell . The BC Liberals won over 57% of
360-402: A campaign in 1999 to remove the party's then leadership. The group conducted a bitter year-long public campaign that included an unsuccessful lawsuit against the party and later-disproven allegations against the party's leader and board of directors including fraud, vote-rigging and even theft. Although the group was defeated at the party's 1999 convention, it triumphed in 2000. Shortly thereafter,
450-696: A large presence in the Metro Vancouver region. The Franco-Columbian community is an officially recognized linguistic minority, and around one percent of British Columbians claim French as their mother tongue . British Columbia is home to at least 34 distinct Indigenous languages . Major sectors of British Columbia's economy include forestry , mining , filmmaking and video production , tourism , real estate , construction , wholesale , and retail . Its main exports include lumber and timber , pulp and paper products, copper , coal , and natural gas . British Columbia exhibits high property values and
540-489: A proposal to field only female candidates in the following election, Carr and her husband Paul George returned briefly to active involvement to defeat the proposal. From 1988 to 1992, the party was deeply divided between supporters of Carr and Greenpeace founder Jim Bohlen and its Ecofeminist Caucus. During this period, its internal politics were dominated by a compromise faction led by electoral reform activist Steve Kisby. However, this period of relative stability ended with
630-516: A series of devastating epidemics of diseases the people had no immunity to. The population dramatically collapsed, culminating in the 1862 smallpox outbreak in Victoria that spread throughout the coast. European settlement did not bode well for the remaining native population of British Columbia. Colonial officials deemed colonists could make better use of the land than the First Nations people, and thus
720-827: A small island off the coast of Haida Gwaii . Many healthy populations of fish are present, including salmonids such as several species of salmon , trout , steelhead , and char . Besides salmon and trout, sport-fishers in BC also catch halibut , bass , and sturgeon . On the coast, harbour seals and river otters are common. Cetacean species native to the coast include the orca , humpback whale , grey whale , harbour porpoise , Dall's porpoise , Pacific white-sided dolphin and minke whale . Some endangered species in British Columbia are: Vancouver Island marmot , spotted owl , American white pelican , and badgers. White spruce or Engelmann spruce and their hybrids occur in 12 of
810-493: A sufficient number of signatures). Despite facing public condemnation from FVBC's Loenen, Free Your Vote recruited hundreds of volunteers for the province-wide effort, building a far larger citizen organization than either ECCO or FVBC. It also gained the support of many leftists, including the official endorsement of the BC Nurses' and other unions. The campaign also faced its share of difficulties, such as leaked internal memos from
900-655: A very wide range of birds, has long been popular. Bears ( grizzly , black —including the Kermode bear or spirit bear) live here, as do deer , elk , moose , caribou , big-horn sheep , mountain goats , marmots , beavers , muskrats , coyotes , wolves , mustelids (such as wolverines , badgers and fishers ), cougars , eagles , ospreys , herons , Canada geese , swans , loons , hawks , owls , ravens , harlequin ducks , and many other sorts of ducks. Smaller birds ( robins , jays , grosbeaks , chickadees , and so on) also abound. Murrelets are known from Frederick Island,
990-455: A wholly unorganized area of British North America under the de facto jurisdiction of HBC administrators; however, unlike Rupert's Land to the north and east, the territory was not a concession to the company. Rather, it was simply granted a monopoly to trade with the First Nations inhabitants. All that was changed with the westward extension of American exploration and the concomitant overlapping claims of territorial sovereignty, especially in
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#17328376974711080-456: Is Canada's third-largest province in terms of total area, after Quebec and Ontario . The first known human inhabitants of the area settled in British Columbia at least 10,000 years ago. Such groups include the Coast Salish , Tsilhqotʼin , and Haida peoples, among many others. One of the earliest British settlements in the area was Fort Victoria , established in 1843, which gave rise to
1170-627: Is a significant centre for maritime trade : the Port of Vancouver is the largest port in Canada and the most diversified port in North America . Although less than 5 percent of the province's territory is arable land , significant agriculture exists in the Fraser Valley and Okanagan due to the warmer climate. British Columbia is home to 45% of all publicly listed companies in Canada. The province's name
1260-492: Is generally in the subarctic climate zone, but even there, milder air can penetrate far inland. The coldest temperature in British Columbia was recorded in Smith River , where it dropped to −58.9 °C (−74.0 °F) on January 31, 1947, one of the coldest readings recorded anywhere in North America. Atlin in the province's far northwest, along with the adjoining Southern Lakes region of Yukon , get midwinter thaws caused by
1350-485: Is home to First Nations groups that have a deep history with a significant number of indigenous languages. There are more than 200 First Nations in BC. Prior to contact (with non-Aboriginal people), human history is known from oral histories, archaeological investigations, and from early records from explorers encountering societies early in the period. The arrival of Paleoindians from Beringia took place between 20,000 and 12,000 years ago. Hunter-gatherer families were
1440-528: Is now the United States include Vancouver, Washington ( Fort Vancouver ), formerly the "capital" of Hudson's Bay operations in the Columbia District, Colville, Washington and Walla Walla, Washington (old Fort Nez Percés ). With the amalgamation of the two fur trading companies in 1821, modern-day British Columbia existed in three fur trading departments. The bulk of the central and northern interior
1530-462: Is the only province in Canada that borders the Pacific Ocean. British Columbia's highest mountain is Mount Fairweather ; the highest mountain entirely within the province is Mount Waddington . British Columbia's capital is Victoria , located at the southeastern tip of Vancouver Island . Only a narrow strip of Vancouver Island, from Campbell River to Victoria, is significantly populated. Much of
1620-525: The 2005 provincial election , the GPBC's vote declined to 9% province-wide from 12% four years previously. Despite being rated highly for her debate performance by media commentators, Carr's performance was poorly rated by the public and her own vote share declined to 25% in her home constituency of Powell River-Sunshine Coast , 17% behind the victorious NDP candidate. Only in the constituencies of Vancouver-Burrard , West Vancouver-Garibaldi and Kelowna-Mission did
1710-548: The British Isles , many British Columbians also trace their ancestors to continental Europe , East Asia , and South Asia . Indigenous Canadians constitute about 6 percent of the province's total population. Christianity is the largest religion in the region, though the majority of the population is non-religious. English is the common language of the province, although Punjabi , Mandarin Chinese , and Cantonese also have
1800-1042: The Chinook effect, which is also common (and much warmer) in more southerly parts of the Interior. During winter on the coast, rainfall , sometimes relentless heavy rain, dominates because of consistent barrages of cyclonic low-pressure systems from the North Pacific. Average snowfall on the coast during a normal winter is between 25 and 50 centimetres (10 and 20 in), but on occasion (and not every winter) heavy snowfalls with more than 20 centimetres (8 in) and well below freezing temperatures arrive when modified arctic air reaches coastal areas, typically for short periods, and can take temperatures below −10 °C (14 °F), even at sea level. Arctic outflow winds can occasionally result in wind chill temperatures at or even below −17.8 °C (0.0 °F). While winters are very wet, coastal areas are generally milder and dry during summer under
1890-664: The Columbia in the name Columbia Rediviva came from the name Columbia for the New World or parts thereof , a reference to Christopher Columbus . The governments of Canada and British Columbia recognize Colombie-Britannique as the French name for the province. British Columbia is bordered to the west by the Pacific Ocean and the American state of Alaska , to the north by Yukon and
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#17328376974711980-638: The Dakelh (Carrier) and the Tsilhqotʼin . The inlets and valleys of the British Columbia coast shelter large, distinctive populations, such as the Haida , Kwakwakaʼwakw and Nuu-chah-nulth , sustained by the region's abundant salmon and shellfish. These peoples developed complex cultures dependent on the western red cedar that included wooden houses, seagoing whaling and war canoes and elaborately carved potlatch items and totem poles . Contact with Europeans brought
2070-578: The Fraser Canyon , close to the confluence of the Fraser and Thompson rivers, where the terrain is rugged and covered with desert-type flora. Semi-desert grassland is found in large areas of the Interior Plateau , with land uses ranging from ranching at lower altitudes to forestry at higher ones. The northern, mostly mountainous, two-thirds of the province is largely unpopulated and undeveloped, except for
2160-460: The Inside Passage 's many inlets provide some of British Columbia's renowned and spectacular scenery, which forms the backdrop and context for a growing outdoor adventure and ecotourism industry. 75 percent of the province is mountainous (more than 1,000 m [3,300 ft] above sea level ); 60 percent is forested; and only about 5 percent is arable. The province's mainland away from
2250-520: The North Coast just south of Southeast Alaska . The exception to British Columbia's wet and cloudy winters is during the El Niño phase. During El Niño events, the jet stream is much farther south across North America, making the province's winters milder and drier than normal. Winters are much wetter and cooler during the opposite phase, La Niña . There are 14 designations of parks and protected areas in
2340-664: The North West Company and the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), effectively established a permanent British presence in the region. The Columbia District was broadly defined as being south of 54°40 north latitude, (the southern limit of Russian America ), north of Mexican-controlled California, and west of the Rocky Mountains . It was, by the Anglo-American Convention of 1818 , under the "joint occupancy and use" of citizens of
2430-649: The Northwest Territories , to the east by the province of Alberta , and to the south by the American states of Washington , Idaho , and Montana . The southern border of British Columbia was established by the 1846 Oregon Treaty, although its history is tied with lands as far south as California . British Columbia's land area is 944,735 square kilometres (364,800 sq mi). British Columbia's rugged coastline stretches for more than 27,000 kilometres (17,000 mi), and includes deep, mountainous fjords and about 6,000 islands, most of which are uninhabited. It
2520-574: The Oroville–Osoyoos Border Crossing , is one of several wine and cider -producing regions in Canada. Other wine regions in British Columbia include the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island and the Fraser Valley . The Southern Interior cities of Kamloops and Penticton have some of the warmest and longest summer climates in Canada (while higher elevations are cold and snowy), although their temperatures are often exceeded north of
2610-525: The PEI Tories –was completely wiped off the map. Dosanjh resigned as party leader soon after the election; he had actually conceded defeat a week before voters went to the polls. Despite being the only other party in the Assembly, the BC NDP lacked the four seats then required for official party status. The British Columbia Unity Party had been created as a union of conservative parties. Initially, Reform BC ,
2700-408: The Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains , the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, forests, lakes, mountains, inland deserts and grassy plains. British Columbia borders the province of Alberta to the east; the territories of Yukon and Northwest Territories to the north; the U.S. states of Washington , Idaho and Montana to
2790-699: The Social Credit , the British Columbia Party , and the Family Coalition Party had joined under the "BC Unity" umbrella. By the time the election was called, however, only the Family Coalition Party and a large majority of Reform BC segments had remained in the BC Unity coalition. The other parties had withdrawn to continue independently. The parties would collectively only earn around 4% of
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2880-608: The fur trade , rather than political considerations. In 1794, by the third of a series of agreements known as the Nootka Conventions , Spain conceded its claims of exclusivity in the Pacific. This opened the way for formal claims and colonization by other powers, including Britain, but because of the Napoleonic Wars , there was little British action on its claims in the region until later. The establishment of trading posts by
2970-549: The united colony's capital. In 1871, British Columbia entered Confederation as the sixth province of Canada, in enactment of the British Columbia Terms of Union . British Columbia is a diverse and cosmopolitan province, drawing on a plethora of cultural influences from its British Canadian , European , and Asian diasporas , as well as the Indigenous population . Though the province's ethnic majority originates from
3060-1101: The 14 biogeoclimatic zones of British Columbia . Common types of trees present in BC's forests include western redcedar , yellow-cedar , Rocky Mountain juniper , lodgepole pine , ponderosa or yellow pine , whitebark pine , limber pine , western white pine , western larch , tamarack , alpine larch , white spruce , Engelmann spruce , Sitka spruce , black spruce , grand fir , Amabilis fir , subalpine fir , western hemlock , mountain hemlock , Douglas-fir , western yew , Pacific dogwood , bigleaf maple , Douglas maple , vine maple , arbutus , black hawthorn , cascara , Garry oak , Pacific crab apple , choke cherry , pin cherry , bitter cherry , red alder , mountain alder , paper birch , water birch , black cottonwood , balsam poplar , trembling aspen . First Nations peoples of British Columbia used plants for food, and to produce material goods like fuel and building products. Plant foods included berries, and roots like camas . Environment Canada subdivides British Columbia into six ecozones : The area now known as British Columbia
3150-577: The 14 different designations that includes over 800 distinct areas. British Columbia contains seven of Canada's national parks and National Park Reserves: British Columbia contains a large number of provincial parks , run by BC Parks under the aegis of the Ministry of Environment. British Columbia's provincial parks system is the second largest parks system in Canada, the largest being Canada's National Parks system. Another tier of parks in British Columbia are regional parks , which are maintained and run by
3240-654: The Interior during mid-summer, with the record high of 49.6 °C (121.3 °F) being held in Lytton on June 29, 2021, during a record-breaking heat wave that year . The extended summer dryness often creates conditions that spark forest fires, from dry-lightning or man-made causes. Many areas of the province are often covered by a blanket of heavy cloud and low fog during the winter months, in contrast to abundant summer sunshine. Annual sunshine hours vary from 2200 near Cranbrook and Victoria to less than 1300 in Prince Rupert , on
3330-561: The Islands served as interim leader until December 9, 2015, when Weaver was acclaimed to the full-time position. In the May 2017 general election , Weaver, Adam Olsen and Sonia Furstenau were elected to the provincial legislature, with the party winning 16.84% of the popular vote. The Green Party signed a confidence and supply agreement with the NDP in exchange for policy concessions on environmental and social issues. The NDP and Greens then defeated
3420-593: The NDP's expense. Although he was arrested in logging road blockades in 1993 and 1997, Parker's Greens actually invested more resources in opposing the BC Benefits package of welfare reforms and working on other social issues than it did on any significant environmental issue. While remaining sharply critical of Glen Clark 's NDP government, Parker spearheaded highly controversial negotiations to form municipal electoral alliances with NDP-affiliated parties in 1998 after vote-splitting all but wiped out leftist representation at
3510-536: The Pacific Ocean, inscribing a stone marking his accomplishment on the shoreline of Dean Channel near Bella Coola . His expedition theoretically established British sovereignty inland, and a succession of other fur company explorers charted the maze of rivers and mountain ranges between the Canadian Prairies and the Pacific. Mackenzie and other explorers—notably John Finlay , Simon Fraser , Samuel Black , and David Thompson —were primarily concerned with extending
3600-519: The Province of British Columbia , Canada . It was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia . The election was called on April 18, 2001 and held on May 16, 2001. Voter turnout was 55.4 per cent of all eligible voters. The incumbent British Columbia New Democratic Party (BC NDP), in office since 1991, had been rocked by two major scandals—the Fast Ferries Scandal and
3690-781: The United States and subjects of Britain (which is to say, the fur companies). This co-occupancy was ended with the Oregon Treaty of 1846. The major supply route was the York Factory Express between Hudson Bay and Fort Vancouver . Some of the early outposts grew into settlements, communities, and cities. Among the places in British Columbia that began as fur trading posts are Fort St. John (established 1794); Hudson's Hope (1805); Fort Nelson (1805); Fort St. James (1806); Prince George (1807); Kamloops (1812); Fort Langley (1827); Fort Victoria (1843); Yale (1848); and Nanaimo (1853). Fur company posts that became cities in what
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3780-812: The area east of the Rockies , where the Peace River Country contains BC's portion of the Canadian Prairies , centred at the city of Dawson Creek . British Columbia is considered part of the Pacific Northwest and the Cascadia bioregion , along with the American states of Alaska, Idaho, (western) Montana, Oregon , Washington, and (northern) California . Because of the many mountain ranges and rugged coastline, British Columbia's climate varies dramatically across
3870-587: The blocking presence of successive mountain ranges, the climate of some of the interior valleys of the province (such as the Thompson, parts of the Fraser Canyon, the southern Cariboo and parts of the Okanagan) is semi-arid with certain locations receiving less than 250 millimetres (10 in) in annual precipitation. The annual mean temperature in the most populated areas of the province is up to 12 °C (54 °F),
3960-645: The city of Victoria, the capital of the Colony of Vancouver Island . The Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866) was subsequently founded by Richard Clement Moody , and by the Royal Engineers, Columbia Detachment , in response to the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush . Moody selected the site for and founded the mainland colony's capital New Westminster . The colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia were incorporated in 1866, subsequent to which Victoria became
4050-584: The coast in 1775. In doing so, Pérez and Quadra reasserted the Spanish claim for the Pacific coast , first made by Vasco Núñez de Balboa in 1513. The explorations of James Cook in 1778 and George Vancouver in 1792 and 1793 established British jurisdiction over the coastal area north and west of the Columbia River. In 1793, Sir Alexander Mackenzie was the first European to journey across North America overland to
4140-535: The coastal regions is somewhat moderated by the Pacific Ocean. Terrain ranges from dry inland forests and semi-arid valleys, to the range and canyon districts of the Central and Southern Interior , to boreal forest and subarctic prairie in the Northern Interior. High mountain regions both north and south have subalpine flora and subalpine climate . The Okanagan wine area , extending from Vernon to Osoyoos at
4230-488: The election in Victoria, BC, of Art Vanden Berg, the first person in Canadian history to run as a Green and be elected to City Council. In Vancouver, the coalition effort also elected Parks Commissioner Roslyn Cassells. The party's increased poll standing, new position on collaboration with its longtime rivals and impending electoral success attracted the attention of a number of prominent environmentalists, led by Carr, who began
4320-569: The endorsement of prominent environmentalist David Suzuki . Green hopes for a breakthrough in the Kootenay riding of Nelson-Creston with candidate Andy Shadrack yielded a result of only 11%. Parker's first term (1993–96) was characterized by near-continuous touring of rural BC which had, up to that point, negligible or highly intermittent organization outside of the Okanagan and Comox Valleys. This touring paid off in yielding on-going organization throughout
4410-576: The expense of work on environmental issues, electoral reform moved to the top of Carr's agenda as leader. Disagreeing with Fair Voting BC's decision to devote the movement's energies to backing the new BC Liberal government's plan to move forward with the Citizens' Assembly process it had developed in 1997, Carr founded a rival electoral reform organization called Free Your Vote to utilize the province's citizen initiative legislation (which technically allows citizens to force referendums on legislation if they gather
4500-434: The failure of her preferred Free Your Vote, Carr focused her energy on a lively province-wide campaign opposing the 2010 Winter Olympic Games bid. But once the games were awarded to BC, the party was unable to find province-wide issues that resonated strongly with voters. Between 2003 and 2005, the party's presence was notably low key as Carr returned to the constant touring mode that had characterized Parker's first term. In
4590-494: The incumbent Liberal government by one vote in a no confidence vote, with the NDP then being invited to form government. On October 7, 2019, Andrew Weaver announced he would step down as party leader once a new leader had been chosen and would not run in the next British Columbia election anticipated to take place in 2021. On December 20, 2019, Olsen was named interim leader, effective January 6, 2020. On January 16, 2020, Weaver resigned from caucus to sit as an independent member of
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#17328376974714680-523: The influence of stable anti-cyclonic high pressure. Southern Interior valleys are hot in summer; for example, in Osoyoos , the July maximum temperature averages 31.7 °C (89.1 °F), making it the hottest month of any location in Canada; this hot weather sometimes spreads towards the coast or to the far north of the province. Temperatures often exceed 40 °C (104 °F) in the lower elevations of valleys in
4770-425: The islands of southern Alaska and northern British Columbia. The Na-Dene language group is believed to be linked to the Yeniseian languages of Siberia: the Dene of the western Arctic may represent a distinct wave of migration from Asia to North America. The Interior of British Columbia is home to the Salishan language groups such as the Shuswap (Secwepemc) , Okanagan and Athabaskan language groups, primarily
4860-423: The land should be owned by the colonists. To ensure colonists would be able to settle properly and make use of the land, First Nations were forcibly relocated onto reserves , which were often too small to support their way of life. By the 1930s, British Columbia had over 1500 reserves. Lands now known as British Columbia were added to the British Empire during the 19th century. Colonies originally begun with
4950-434: The leadership election was held. Former Vancouver-Hastings candidate Ian Gregson was the first to announce his candidacy. Jane Sterk, a municipal councillor, university professor and small business owner, was elected leader of the BC Greens at their 2007 Convention at Royal Roads University in Victoria. She assumed the role from interim leader Christopher Ian Bennett. The Greens maintain they receive support from all over
5040-431: The legislature. The party was scheduled to hold a leadership election from June 15 to 26, 2020 , but the election was postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic in British Columbia . It had been planned that the winner would be announced at the party's convention in Nanaimo . The leadership contest was relaunched on June 15, 2020. Sonia Furstenau was elected as leader on September 14, 2020. Sonia Furstenau
5130-409: The local level in Vancouver and Victoria in 1996. These negotiations, approved by Clark, yielded tripartite agreements between local labour councils, Greens and New Democrats in Vancouver and Victoria, leading to Red-Green coalitions contesting the 1999 municipal elections in both cities with the support of organized labour. Neither coalition formed government but both made substantial gains, resulting in
5220-559: The main social structure from 10,000 to 5,000 years ago. The nomadic population lived in non-permanent structures foraging for nuts, berries and edible roots while hunting and trapping larger and small game for food and furs. Around 5,000 years ago individual groups started to focus on resources available to them locally. Coast Salish peoples had complex land management practices linked to ecosystem health and resilience. Forest gardens on Canada's northwest coast included crabapple, hazelnut, cranberry, wild plum, and wild cherry species. Thus with
5310-429: The mildest anywhere in Canada. The valleys of the Southern Interior have short winters with only brief bouts of cold or infrequent heavy snow, while those in the Cariboo , in the Central Interior , are colder because of increased altitude and latitude, but without the intensity or duration experienced at similar latitudes elsewhere in Canada. Outside of the driest valleys, the Southern and Central Interior generally have
5400-410: The native population of what became British Columbia. The arrival of Europeans began around the mid-18th century, as fur traders entered the area to harvest sea otters . While it is thought Sir Francis Drake may have explored the British Columbian coast in 1579, it was Juan Pérez who completed the first documented voyage, which took place in 1774. Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra explored
5490-421: The newly elected Green Party of Canada leader Elizabeth May , Carr accepted the paid position of deputy leader of the Green Party of Canada. She then ran as a federal candidate in the riding of Vancouver Centre but did not win. The Green Party of British Columbia held a leadership election on October 21, 2007, after the resignation of Carr in September 2006. Christopher Bennett was appointed interim leader until
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#17328376974715580-473: The party climbed to 11.15% in the 61 ridings where they ran candidates. Weaver won 40% of the vote in his riding, and the party also surpassed 20% of the vote in Esquimalt-Royal Roads , Nelson-Creston , Saanich North and the Islands , Victoria-Beacon Hill , and Victoria-Swan Lake . On August 13, 2013, Sterk announced she would retire from politics after the 2013 Annual General Meeting, held on August 24, 2013. Adam Olsen, former candidate in Saanich North and
5670-419: The party elected Carr as its new leader; since 2001, the party leader has ceased to be subject to annual review votes, the process by which Parker was removed. Following the 2000 convention, all of the party's elected municipal representatives and some other members resigned. With the high-profile changes at the top, the party was able to improve on its 9% poll standing at the beginning of 2000 and reached 12% of
5760-461: The party's failure to make a breakthrough in the 1991 provincial election , despite increasing its province-wide vote share to 0.86% and fielding a slate of 42 candidates. In 1993, the party elected a new leader, 21-year-old Stuart Parker , who revitalized the party with youthful new members. He managed to take the party to running close to a full slate in the 1996 election , but was only able to garner only 2% support province-wide, despite receiving
5850-501: The party's organizing chair explaining that organizers knew the petition drive would fail, but were simply using it to build the party's organizational base. Although the campaign only submitted enough signatures in four of the province's 79 ridings, Free Your Vote was successful in mobilizing new support for reform. But it also appears to have hardened the party's support for a single model of proportional representation (mixed-member, closed-list) and public condemnation of others. Following
5940-519: The party's popularity increase. These measures seemed insufficient to quiet increasing internal dissatisfaction with her leadership. Prior to the first annual convention following the reinstitution of the practice of requiring leaders to step down and run to succeed themselves each electoral cycle (this policy, along with annual confidence votes, had been previously repealed in 2001), Carr announced her resignation on September 24, 2006. As predicted by those familiar with Carr's long-standing relationship with
6030-430: The party's status was not yet recognized by Elections Canada . She appears in electoral records as an "independent" candidate. Carr stepped back from active involvement in the party in 1985, and the party abolished the position of leader. Thereafter, it was represented in the media by three spokespersons. In the 1986 provincial election , the party won 0.23% of the vote and fielded nine candidates. In 1988, in response to
6120-429: The party's strongest showing was 4.4% in Rossland-Trail; in 1996, 11% in Nelson-Creston, in 2001 and 2005, in Carr's riding of Powell River-Sunshine Coast where she received 27% and 25% respectively, and in 2009 in West Vancouver-Sea-to-Sky with 22%. The Greens won their first ever seat with Andrew Weaver winning in Oak Bay-Gordon Head in the May 2013 general election . Despite a slight drop in overall popular vote,
6210-406: The passage of time there is a pattern of increasing regional generalization with a more sedentary lifestyle . These indigenous populations evolved over the next 5,000 years across a large area into many groups with shared traditions and customs. To the northwest of the province are the peoples of the Na-Dene languages , which include the Athapaskan-speaking peoples and the Tlingit , who live on
6300-490: The political spectrum. In the federal election of 2004 , former Social Credit Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) and media personality Rafe Mair confounded many by openly supporting the Green Party. The Greens have often been labelled as right-wing at the same time as being labelled left-wing by opponents. The Greens' strength is concentrated on Southern Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands, The Okanagan, Sea-to-Sky region and in high density areas of Vancouver. In 1991,
6390-429: The popular vote in the May 2001 provincial election . In spite of that significant support, it won no seats in the provincial legislature – a fact which has been cited as an argument against the first-past-the-post voting system used in BC elections. Although she had sponsored a series of resolutions at the party's 2000 convention condemning what many saw as the party's distraction with social and governance policy at
6480-485: The popular vote, and an unprecedented 77 of the 79 seats in the provincial legislature—the largest victory in the province's electoral history. The BC NDP, on the other hand, suffered a near-total political collapse. The party lost almost half of the share of the popular vote that it had won in the 1996 election , while its seat count fell from 39 seats to only two—those of Deputy Premier and Education Minister Joy MacPhail and Community Development Minister Jenny Kwan . It
6570-401: The province that reflect the different administration and creation of these areas in a modern context. There are 141 ecological reserves, 35 provincial marine parks, 7 provincial heritage sites, 6 National Historic Sites of Canada , 4 national parks and 3 national park reserves. 12.5 percent of the province's area (114,000 km or 44,000 sq mi) is considered protected under one of
6660-525: The province's regional districts . The Ministry of Forests operates forest recreation sites. In addition to these areas, over 47,000 square kilometres (18,000 sq mi) of arable land are protected by the Agricultural Land Reserve . Much of the province is undeveloped, so populations of many mammalian species that have become rare in much of the United States still flourish in British Columbia. Watching animals of various sorts, including
6750-411: The province, enabling the party to come just four candidates short of a full slate. The direction of the party under Parker was set by many disgruntled ex– British Columbia New Democratic Party members, and the policies of the party under Parker were notably leftist. During Parker's second term as leader, the party rose to a peak of 11% in public opinion polls between 1996 and 1999, almost exclusively at
6840-552: The province. Coastal southern British Columbia has a mild and rainy climate influenced by the North Pacific Current . Most of the region is classified as oceanic , though pockets of warm-summer Mediterranean climate also exist in the far-southern parts of the coast. Precipitation averages above 1,000 mm (39 in) in almost all of the coastal region, and Hucuktlis Lake on Vancouver Island receives an average of 6,903 mm (271.8 in) of rain annually. Due to
6930-562: The seat. In January 2024, Furstenau announced that she would run in Victoria-Beacon Hill during the provincial general election later that year . The following Green Party MLAs have represented electoral districts in British Columbia: British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC ) is the westernmost province of Canada . Situated in the Pacific Northwest between
7020-501: The south, and Alaska to the northwest. With an estimated population of over 5.6 million as of 2024, it is Canada's third-most populous province . The capital of British Columbia is Victoria , while the province's largest city is Vancouver . Vancouver and its suburbs together make up the third-largest metropolitan area in Canada , with the 2021 census recording 2.6 million people in Metro Vancouver . British Columbia
7110-526: The southern Columbia Basin (within present day Washington and Oregon ). In 1846, the Oregon Treaty divided the territory along the 49th parallel to the Strait of Georgia , with the area south of this boundary (excluding Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands ) transferred to sole American sovereignty. The Colony of Vancouver Island was created in 1849, with Victoria designated as the capital. New Caledonia, as
7200-404: The southern interior rivals some of the snowiest cities in Canada, and freezing rain and fog are sometimes present on such roads as well. This can result in hazardous driving conditions, as people are usually travelling between warmer areas such as Vancouver or Kamloops , and may be unaware that the conditions may be slippery and cold. Winters are generally severe in the Northern Interior which
7290-591: The support of the Hudson's Bay Company (Vancouver Island, the mainland) were amalgamated, then entered Confederation as British Columbia in 1871 as part of the Dominion of Canada. During the 1770s, smallpox killed at least 30 percent of the Pacific Northwest First Nations . This devastating epidemic was the first in a series; the 1862 Pacific Northwest smallpox epidemic killed about half to two-thirds of
7380-504: The vote, as voters, conscious of vote-splitting that had taken place between the Liberals, Reform BC, and the since-defunct Progressive Democratic Alliance in 1996, united behind the Liberals this time. Ron Gamble, sometime leader and sometime president of the renewed Reform BC continued his opposition to conservative mergers, consistently proclaiming a "Say No to Chris Delaney & BC Unity" policy, until Unity's eventual collapse in 2004 after
7470-548: The western part of Vancouver Island and the rest of the coast is covered by temperate rainforest . The province's most populous city is Vancouver, which is at the confluence of the Fraser River and Georgia Strait , in the mainland's southwest corner (an area often called the Lower Mainland ). By land area, Abbotsford is the largest city. Vanderhoof is near the geographic centre of the province. The Coast Mountains and
7560-411: The whole of the mainland rather than just its north-central Interior came to be called, continued to be an unorganized territory of British North America, "administered" by individual HBC trading post managers. 2001 British Columbia general election Ujjal Dosanjh New Democratic Gordon Campbell Liberal The 2001 British Columbia general election was the 37th provincial election in
7650-657: Was chosen by Queen Victoria , when the Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866) , i.e., "the Mainland", became a British colony in 1858. It refers to the Columbia District , the British name for the territory drained by the Columbia River , in southeastern British Columbia, which was the namesake of the pre- Oregon Treaty Columbia Department of the Hudson's Bay Company . Queen Victoria chose British Columbia to distinguish what
7740-686: Was easily the worst defeat of a sitting government in British Columbia history. It was also the second-worst defeat of a sitting provincial government in Canada, eclipsed only by the New Brunswick election of 1987 , the Alberta election of 1935 , and the Prince Edward Island election of 1935 . In those elections, the governing party–the New Brunswick Tories , the United Farmers of Alberta and
7830-502: Was elected as leader on September 14, 2020. A week after her selection as leader, the 2020 general election was called. Furstenau and Adam Olsen were returned to the Legislature. The electoral district of West Vancouver-Sea to Sky was originally called for Green candidate Jeremy Valeriote; the winning margin was small enough to trigger an automatic judicial recount. After the recount, it was determined that Liberal Jordan Sturdy had held
7920-474: Was formed in British Columbia, Canada on February 6, 1983. It registered as a provincial society and a political party shortly before the 1983 provincial election . It fielded four candidates and received 0.19% of the vote under the leadership of Adriane Carr . In a federal by-election in the riding of Mission—Port Moody the same year, Betty Nickerson was the Green Party of Canada 's first federal candidate, but
8010-833: Was organized into the New Caledonia district, administered from Fort St. James. The interior south of the Thompson River watershed and north of the Columbia was organized into the Columbia District, administered from Fort Vancouver on the lower Columbia River. The northeast corner of the province east of the Rockies, known as the Peace River Block, was attached to the much larger Athabasca District , headquartered in Fort Chipewyan , in present-day Alberta. Until 1849, these districts were
8100-520: Was the British sector of the Columbia District from the United States' ("American Columbia" or "Southern Columbia"), which became the Oregon Territory on August 8, 1848, as a result of the treaty. Ultimately, the Columbia in the name British Columbia is derived from the name of the Columbia Rediviva , an American ship which lent its name to the Columbia River and later the wider region;
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