issue 5// vol 47 news // no. 5 An Interview with BC Green Party Leader Sonia Furstenau » Talking to Furstenau about her life, the BC Election, and young voters Craig Allan Staff Writer he 2020 British Columbia provincial election is underway. With candidates declared and the election day of October 24 coming fast, BC’s political parties are navigating themselves through this pandemic election to try to appeal to the voters of the province. One of those hopefuls is Cowichan Valley MLA and BC Green party leader Sonia Furstenau, who won the leadership race of the party one week before Premier John Horgan called a snap election, breaking the Confidence and Supply Agreement that the NDP had signed with the Greens in 2017. The 6¢ Photo of Sonia Fustenau by Nicholas Miller via BC Green Party Other Press was granted an interview with Furstenau to discuss her entry into politics, the youth vote, and the Green party’s vision for the future of BC. Furstenau’s start in politics began under an activist campaign. Back in 2013, the Liberal government approved the dumping of contaminated soil near the watershed of the Shawnigan Lake. “I couldn’t stand by and let that happen,” said Furstenau. She spearheaded letter writing campaigns and got the word out to local media to stop the dumping. She and the town were successful in stopping the permit. “I was really proud about what we did as a community.’ She then decided to throw her hat in the ring for a seat as an MLA for Cowichan Valley and won in 2017, becoming one of three elected Green party members. Despite being the minority party of the coalition government, the Green party was able to get a lot of bills and agreements reflecting the values of the party passed in the Legislature, including professional reliance reform, banning big money, establishing the innovation and fair wages commissions, child welfare reforms, and many other bills and initiatives. “The list goes on and on.” That is why it was so disappointing for the party that Horgan called the snap election. Furstenau was one of the most vocal critics against Horgan’s decision. She says that her and fellow Green MLA Adam Olsen pledged support to the NDP the Friday before Horgan called the election. Furstenau believes that Horgan called the election out of a desire to consolidate power and free himself from being accountable. Furstenau and the Greens are taking Horgan’s decision in stride though, “We went from literally having zero candidates at the start of the election to 74 [...] We have some incredibly inspiring and amazing candidates,” Furstenau said. One of those candidates is Kate O’Connor, a 17-year-old candidate in Saanich South, who will be turning 18 on October 9. When asked Furstenau about why younger people do not vote in elections, she said that younger people do vote, but they are often betrayed by the broken promises of the parties make to them. She cited Justin Trudeau’s win in 2015, that was followed by the As an MLAI said to my colleague who works on my calendar, any youth group, any school, and university that asks for my time, I always said yes.” twinning of the Trans Mountain Pipeline and turning his back on electoral reform. She believes that the key to getting younger voters engaged is to have candidates that represent them not just in policy, but in age. “We have to earn the trust of people who vote, and we have to be truthful and honest [...] I don’t want to see this generation of young voters feel that they don’t have someone to vote for,” she said. When asked what her party will do for the average Douglas College student struggling with the immense challenges of the day, Furstenau says that she has met with reps from many post-secondary groups who are working to get more access to grants, and providing relief to the burden that tuition is putting on college students. As a former teacher herself, Furstenau knows the value of an education, and the importance of being able to follow one’s passion should not be halted due to lack of funds. Accepting this interview with the Other Press is part of Furstenau’s outreach to younger voters. “As an MLA I said to my colleague who works on my calendar, any youth group, any school, and university that asks for my time, | always said yes because I really am committed to focusing on young people and youth,” she said. Furstenau wants to bring multiple groups that may not feel accurately represented in BC into the political discussions of the province. She believes that BC politics is better with a wealth of diverse voices, and that is what the Greens intend to bring to the Legislature. — Sonia Furstenau BC Green Party Leader And they're off! » Provincial election debates to begin next week Jessica Berget Assistant Editor s people digest this week’s presidential debate in the US, BC also looks forward to upcoming debates for the province-wide election towards the end of the month. BC provincial party leaders gear up for the first round of debates on October 13 when they will be debating climate change and the economy. The televised debate will feature BC party leaders like the NDP’s John Horgan, the Liberals’ Andrew Wilkinson, and the Green’s Sonia Furstenau. Though the decision to call an election was not a popular one, the NDP party seems to have the popular vote. At this point, it looks like the risk Horgan took for calling a snap election was a wise move for his party. The votes are currently in the NDP?’s favour with 39 percent, according to a poll commissioned by 338Canada where they asked respondents, “if the election was held today, who would you vote for?” The Liberal party trails behind with 29 percent, and the Green party sits at 13 percent. The Conservative party has 1 percent of the votes, according to the same poll. As for their platforms, BC Liberals announced they plan to eliminate provincial sales tax for one year to help reboot the economy from the pandemic (then reduce the tax to three percent in the subsequent year) should they be elected. As it stands, the BC provincial sales tax is at seven percent. “Eliminating PST puts more money in people’s pockets, stimulates growth for struggling small business, and helps British Columbians who are struggling to get by. This is a vital step to rebuild our economy,’ Wilkinson said. Liberals also promise to eliminate “tent cities,’ but do not explain how they will do it. In her first platform announcement, Furstenau says the Green party will end for-profit long-term senior care, citing COVID-19 for shining a light on the state of senior homes. The NDP promised to expand BC access grants for post-secondary students and add spaces to create more technology programs. Horgan also pledged to increase the wages of long-term senior care workers. The campaign trail has already been met with some setbacks. The Green party struggled to find enough candidates— fielding 74 candidates instead of the usual 87. On the matter, Furstenau said: “We did not have the head start that the NDP had. We did not even have the head start that the Liberal party had.” The Liberal party also had some hiccups at the beginning when a BC Liberal candidate was accused of election fraud. Ina letter by party lawyers to Elections BC, it alleges that Garry Thind, the Liberal candidate for the Surrey-Fleetwood district, has been collecting personal information from constituents and requesting mail- in ballots on their behalf. As of October 2, Elections BC says they have found no evidence of corrupt voting occurring.