Vaughn Palmer: Can Lorne Doerkson keep B.C. Conservatives, with their history of infighting, united?

Many voters may be asking whether nice-guy Lorne Doerkson could keep a Conservative government from fracturing over almost-inevitable internal policy rifts, say columnist Vaughn Palmer. Photo by Ethan Cairns /B.C. Broadcast Consortium

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VICTORIA — NDP leader David Eby was midway through the news conference to launch the election last month when he got hit with what would prove to be a defining question of the campaign.

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“So, have you effectively united the right?” asked the CBC’s Katie DeRosa.

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Eby reacted with scorn and disbelief that the Conservatives, fractured into three pieces and beset by headline-making chaos for weeks on end, could be unified.

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“They’ve had four leaders in two years, they’ve been in chaos since the last election,” he fumed.

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Less than four months had passed since the Conservatives elected a new leader, Kerry-Lynne Findlay. Despite winning by the narrowest of margins, KLF (as she was known) launched a purge that would not have been out of place in a religious cult. She surrounded herself with a collection of oddballs and extremists that would not have been out of place in a convention of internet trolls.

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There followed three months of turmoil, resignations and expulsions. At one point, they hired a private detective to find out who was leaking some of the more delicious internal party secrets ever seen by the B.C. news media.

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No wonder Eby was tempted to take political advantage of such disarray. But when it became apparent that he was preparing to call a snap election, two years early and in the midst of local government campaigns, the dynamic shifted overnight.

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On Sept. 20, Findlay resigned. Later that day, the Conservatives chose Lorne Doerkson as leader. Next day, most of the former caucus members returned to the fold.

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So, by the time the premier met with reporters on the 22nd, Conservatives were indeed uniting in anticipation of an election call that was as cynical as it was unnecessary.

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“David Eby called a snap election that nobody wanted,” said Doerkson, meeting with reporters later in the day. “But David Eby is going to regret this because this election offers an opportunity for hope and for real change and today, we’re coming together.”

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They did come together, too, which was another surprise. But looking back, I am struck by what John Rustad said when asked if the party were ready for an election.

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“It is 1,000 times more ready than it was in 2024,” the former leader told reporters. Unready as the Conservatives were then, they almost defeated Eby.

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This time the Conservatives have Doerkson, whose likability was acknowledged by Eby himself.

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“Sure, he seems like a nice guy,” said the NDP leader, momentarily departing from his increasingly negative campaign.

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Doerkson played to his down-to-earth qualities for much of the campaign, avoiding the rough stuff. He also minimized contact with the media, following the rule that when a government is falling, the job of the Opposition is to stay out of the way.