Former B.C. Conservative leadership candidate Caroline Elliott to run in provincial election

Caroline Elliott, who narrowly lost the B.C. Conservative leadership race in May, will run for the party in West Vancouver-Capilano in the Oct. 24 provincial election.

Elliott finished two percentage points behind Kerry-Lynne Findlay in the final leadership runoff, according to official results. Findlay left the party last week amid departures and expulsions involving sitting members, and said she would not run for the provincial Conservatives after NDP Leader David Eby called an early election.

The West Vancouver-Capilano seat was won by Conservative Lynne Block in 2024. Block will instead run in North Vancouver-Seymour, where New Democrat Susie Chant is the incumbent.

Elliott is the second of five final Conservative leadership contestants to announce a run in the snap election. Former legislator Peter Milobar will seek election again in Kamloops-Centre. Former leadership candidates Harman Bhangu, Bruce Banman, Sheldon Clare and Steve Kooner are also running again in their seats. Leadership finalist Iain Black appeared with interim leader Lorne Doerkson at his introduction but has not announced his plans.

The B.C. Conservatives have nominated Ayla Dumais in West Vancouver-Sea To Sky, where she will face incumbent B.C. Green MLA Jeremy Valeriote. Valeriote won the riding two years ago over Conservative candidate Yuri Fulmer, who also sought the party leadership. Fulmer defended Findlay in late August, saying he was proud to stand with her, but did not immediately respond to questions about his plans.

Warren Hamm, the first Conservative leadership candidate to declare his intentions in late 2025, is running for OneBC in Penticton-Summerland. He is one of four official candidates for the right-wing party led by former Conservative MLA Dallas Brodie.

Other OneBC candidates include Findlay’s husband, Brent Chapman, who will run in Surrey South after winning the riding for the Conservatives in 2024. He will face CentreBC leader Elenore Sturko and White Rock Mayor Megan Knight, who is running for the Conservatives. Sturko said in a statement that she was embarrassed Chapman had been her MLA and planned to remedy that.

In 2024, Chapman was among 13 Conservative MLAs who asked then-former leader John Rustad to discipline Sturko over comments she made about a former Vancouver Police Board member.