Video: 27 B.C. election candidates meet voters at Surrey forum

Twenty-seven of the 47 candidates in Surrey ridings faced voters at a B.C. election forum in Guildford on Thursday, Oct. 15. The 105-minute event at the Sheraton Vancouver Guildford Hotel was hosted by the Surrey & White Rock Board of Trade (SWRBOT), Cloverdale District Chamber of Commerce and White Rock Business Improvement Association. It focused on business issues and can be watched on SWRBOT’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cu2tFqHI9Vw.

All 10 BC NDP candidates in Surrey attended, along with two BC Conservative candidates, four CentreBC candidates, six Green Party candidates, two OneBC candidates and three independents. Stephen Dooley, the BC NDP candidate in Surrey-Cloverdale, said in a news release that he had served as a director and chair of the Surrey Board of Trade and understood the importance of decision-makers listening to local businesses. He questioned how voters could expect Conservatives to show up for Surrey if elected when their candidates would not attend to hear from the city’s business community.

Surrey is a key battleground in the provincial campaign. Linda Annis, one of seven candidates for mayor in the Surrey civic election, said it is impossible to become premier of British Columbia without winning in Surrey and that every party knows it. She backed BC Conservatives’ promise to build a bridge to replace the Massey Tunnel, as well as a women’s and children’s hospital in Surrey.

The provincial election’s final voting day is Saturday, Oct. 24. Advance voting began Friday, Oct. 16, and runs for six days through Oct. 21. Details are available at elections.bc.ca/2026-provincial-election/where-to-vote (https://elections.bc.ca/2026-provincial-election/where-to-vote/).