B.C. Green Leader Emily Lowan will run in Saanich North and the Islands

B.C. Green Party Leader Emily Lowan will run in Saanich North and the Islands in the upcoming provincial election after incumbent Rob Botterell announced that he will not seek another term.

At a Wednesday announcement in Victoria, Botterell tearfully thanked his family and other supporters from the past two years. He said the decision was his alone, noting that he had always intended to serve one term and was not pressured by party leadership to step aside for Lowan.

Botterell criticized NDP Leader David Eby’s decision to call an election two years into a four-year term, saying it disrupted his personal commitment to serve for four years. Valeriote, the West Vancouver-Sea to Sky MLA and the only other current Green MLA, also plans to run again and likewise criticized the early election call.

Botterell has represented the riding since the 2024 provincial election. Green Adam Olsen held it for the previous seven years, first winning in 2017 and being re-elected in 2020.

Lowan said the party will field candidates across B.C., while concentrating most of its electoral resources on target ridings in the south of Vancouver Island. She said the cost of living is the party’s top issue and that the Greens will campaign on lowering costs, sustainable jobs and a strong economic foundation.

Lowan, who grew up in the riding, has led the party since 2025, when the then-25-year-old won the leadership contest after Sonia Furstenau resigned. Eby called the snap election Tuesday; the final day of voting is scheduled for Oct. 24.