THE BC Green Party announced on Tuesday that Sonia Furstenau is staying on as the leader of the party.

“British Columbians demonstrated that they don’t trust any one party with 100% of the power,” said Furstenau. “They need our next government to leave the negativity and toxicity of the campaign behind, get down to work and start delivering for them. I am prepared to provide guidance and counsel as our party and our province enter this new chapter.”

Alex Pope, BC Greens Provincial Council Co-Chair, added: “We are grateful to Sonia for agreeing to stay on as leader. Sonia was instrumental in ensuring effective policy during the minority government from 2017-20 and she was a distinct voice of hope in this overwhelmingly negative election campaign. Her vision and experience are critical as our new caucus begins their work as MLAs and BC once again faces the possibility of a minority government.”

Newly elected BC Green MLAs Jeremy Valeriote (West Vancouver Sea to Sky) and Rob Botterell (Saanich North and the Islands) also voiced their support for Furstenau’s continued leadership, saying: “We’re glad to have Sonia’s strong leadership as we take on our new jobs as MLAs and navigate the prospect of having the balance of power in the Legislature. We are honoured that our constituents voted to send a BC Green Caucus to Victoria and we are ready to hit the ground running for them. Voters in our riding voted their conscience. We will honour that by staying true to our principles and serving as the voice of reason in the Legislature.”