OneBC seeks to put two ‘unaffiliated’ Surrey candidates on B.C. election ballot

Two candidates in Surrey ridings are listed as unaffiliated in the B.C. election, prompting a dispute between OneBC and Elections BC that could end up in court. OneBC communications director Wyatt Claypool said “paperwork technicalities” prevented James Yaroshuk, running in Surrey-Guildford, and Denis R Hurtubise, running in Surrey South, from appearing on the ballot with OneBC affiliation.

Claypool said OneBC may appeal in court after Elections BC marked the two men and three other B.C. candidates as “unaffiliated” for the Oct. 24 election. He said the party may have to show it was copied on emails and sent campaign packages to Elections BC from its own email account, which he argued makes the source clear. Claypool accused Elections BC of dragging its feet over paperwork issues.

Yaroshuk called the situation frustrating for a first-time candidate. He said he joined OneBC because he believed in its platform and grassroots movement, and hoped to draw on the party’s expertise for his first campaign. Without the affiliation, he said, he will receive less help. OneBC will give him as much assistance as the election rules allow, he said, and is still trying a couple of last-minute measures to get him on the ballot as a party candidate. For now, he is moving ahead as an independent.

The Surrey Now-Leader spoke with Yaroshuk on Thursday, Oct. 8, the day his name and Hurtubise’s were removed from OneBC’s website. Two other candidates with OneBC connections are listed as unaffiliated on Elections BC’s website: Helen Scott in Peace River South and Lee-Ann Bates in Port Coquitlam. Timothy Webster is no longer listed as a candidate in Vancouver-Yaletown. Claypool said candidate Jenny Yamagata’s listing in Burnaby North now shows OneBC following efforts by the party.

Yaroshuk, a carpenter, said he is running in Surrey-Guildford because B.C. has become unaffordable under NDP leadership. He said he had been unhappy with how the province was run for some time and decided to run to try to make a difference instead of simply complaining to people around him.

Yaroshuk said he had lived in Surrey his entire life and once owned a home, but had to sell it when rising prices made it unaffordable. He said he sees no way to get back into the housing market without, as he put it, winning the lottery or something. Housing would be a major part of his platform. Reporting contributions from Tricia Leslie.