Sam Atwal, the BC NDP candidate for Kootenay-Rockies, opened his campaign office in Cranbrook alongside supporters and volunteers and some star power in B.C. Finance Minister Katrine Conroy during an event on Wednesday (Sept. 25) afternoon.
Atwal and Conroy both addressed the crowd; Atwal provided an update on the state of the local campaign and the conversations he's had while door-knocking and meetings with labour groups such as hospital nurses.
He ran through various elements of the BC NDP platform touching on health care, affordable housing, mining, and education, while Conroy — who represents Kootenay West — also provided some provincial context based on her experiences as the province's finance minister and her two decades of service in the legislature.
Significant BC NDP campaign announcements have involved a commitment to expand health care access with the goal of connecting all B.C. residents to a family doctor, supporting priority and critical minerals projects and speeding up permit review timelines. Additional promises include doubling trade apprentice seats from the current 26,000 to over 50,000 and a middle class home ownership program that would include government support with mortgages.
"We are polling in the right direction," Atwal told the crowd. "We are precipitously close to winning this election. We are three weeks out and if we're going in this direction, we will win this election and that is something that we are really excited for and something we haven't seen for 25 years — a BC NDP candidate from Kootenay-Rockies — and we are right there."
Both engaged with the crowd for a Q&A afterwards, as attendees raised issues that included affordable housing, health care infrastructure challenges at the East Kootenay Regional Hospital, seniors care, harm reduction and challenges with replacing schools in rural communities.
"In order to get Sam elected, you guys need to get people out, you need to talk to your neighbours, get the signs up, get the phoning done so we can make sure we can get our vote out," said Conroy, "because that's one thing we're really good at — we're really good at getting our vote out and making sure that people who are going to vote for us are out there and voting for Sam, because that's the way we're going to get him representing you in Victoria."
Atwal and his family have been living in Cranbrook for just under two years, moving from Sparwood where he currently serves as a city councillor after being elected in 2022 in the local government elections.
He works on technology and innovation projects with Elk Valley Resources, formerly Teck, for the last three years.
Atwal has been on the campaign trail since July when he formally accepted the BC NDP nomination for Kootenay-Rockies. Over the last number of months, he's been up and down the Elk Valley, Cranbrook and South Country area on the campaign trail.
It's a unique dynamic to be running for an incumbent government in a riding that has been represented by the Official Opposition since 2017.
"It's been phenomenal, the response has been great," said Atwal, in an interview after the event. "I think people see that hard work. I'm out in the Valley on a regular basis, I'm in and around Cranbrook as well talking to as many groups as possible to really get a strong understanding of what people's asks are. I don't ever want to assume what something is; I think that that's a big piece — making sure that your communities are represented by asking the questions and meeting people where they're at and not just assuming that this is what they want and telling them that."
The BC NDP campaign office for Kootenay-Rockies is located at the Ground Floor Coworking Space in Cranbrook.
British Columbians will head to the polls on Oct. 19.
