The Surrey South byelection has been called.
Election day is set for Sept. 10, according to a release from the provincial government Saturday (Aug. 13).
So far, the riding has two candidates: Elenore Sturko for the BC Liberals and Pauline Greaves for the BC NDP.
Sturko was the first to announce her candidacy. It was in May she said she would be running for the Surrey South seat.
READ ALSO: Face of Surrey RCMP taking run at Surrey South seat for BC Liberals, May 5, 2022
Currently on leave from the Surrey RCMP, Sturko was the Surrey RCMP’s media relations officer. She previously said she will resign if her bid for the seat is successful.
Sturko has been a Mountie since 2009, and policing in Surrey since 2018. Prior to joining the RCMP, she worked in media production and as a reservist with the Canadian Forces.
“From the rising cost of living, to increased violent crime on our streets, to their repeated failure to deliver on much needed mental health services, life is worse off in Surrey under the NDP. The trail of broken promises in my community continues to grow each month under this NDP government and it is time for real change,” Sturko said in a release Saturday.
Meantime, Greaves announced her plan to run with the NDP once again last month. She previously ran in the riding in the 2020 election.
READ ALSO: Dr. Pauline Greaves named BC NDP candidate for Surrey South byelection, July 28, 2022
A resident of Surrey for close to 30 years, Greaves teaches business at the Langara School of Management. She has also served as part of the leadership team on the Commonwealth Secretariat and on Surrey’s Diversity and Inclusivity Advisory Committee.
“The reason I’m running here is primarily the feeling that the interests of the community have not really been addressed,” she told Black Press Media.
Currently, the Elections BC website doesn’t show any candidates, but candidate nominations don’t close until Aug. 20 at 1 p.m.
In a news release Saturday, following the byelection being called, BC Liberal leader Kevin Falcon said Surrey South residents have “been waiting for months.”
It was in April that former Surrey South MLA Stephanie Cadieux announced she would be resigning her seat to become Canada’s first chief accessibility officer.
She was first elected in 2009.
READ ALSO: Surrey South MLA Stephanie Cadieux resigns seat to become Canada’s first Chief Accessibility Officer, April 4, 2022
“I have been proud to serve the constituents of Surrey in Surrey-Panorama, Surrey-Cloverdale and most recently, Surrey South for the last 13 years. It is with gratitude that I reflect on what has been an immense honour, not only to serve my community as an MLA in both government and opposition, but also my Province as a member of cabinet,” she said.
“This role has been exciting, challenging, and exasperating, often at the same time, but I whole-heartedly believe in our democratic system, and in our collective ability to build a better tomorrow, step-by-step.”
While election day is Sept. 10, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., there will be advance voting days Sept. 1 to 4 and Sept. 6 to 7, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. The deadline to request a vote-by-mail package is Sept. 4 at 8 p.m.
Voter registration, online and by phone, closes Aug. 31 at midnight.
For more information, visit elections.bc.ca/provincial-elections/surrey-south-by-election.
– With files from Tracy Holmes, Alex Browne