It doesn't appear the media will have Tom Morino to kick around much longer. The Leader of Democratic Reform BC, the fledgling political party that battled mightily (well, it picketed the CBC) for a spot in the televised leadership debate, says he intends to resign over its poor showing in the recent election.
The party's 33 candidates received barely 2 per cent of the popular vote, despite appearing on the ballot with the fun moniker DR BC. The total included a mere 591 votes for the only MLA the party has even had, Elayne Brenzinger.
Ms. Brenzinger, who joined DR BC after quitting the provincial Liberals, will always be a farcical footnote in B.C. politics for the bum rap that fellow MLA Richard Stewart put his hand on her buttocks and gave a squeeze. Ms. Brenzinger later said she was mistaken and apologized to Mr. Stewart.
The party's best showing was in Okanagan-Westside, where logging operator Janice Marie Money polled more than 1,000 votes. Ms. Money had one of the better quotes during the campaign: "People are trying to figure out the lesser of two evils, but there's Democratic Reform. It's not evil at all."
However, local reporter Ron Seymour was underwhelmed by Ms. Money's performance at an early all-candidates forum. "Appearing nervous and ill-prepared, she theatrically ripped up her speech at the outset," Mr. Seymour wrote. "But whatever words were on the script would have been better than what she wound up saying." Ouch.
As for Mr. Morino, he has new ambitions, now that premier seems to have eluded his grasp. He told the Coldstream Gazette on Vancouver Island that he wants a seat on Colwood City Council.
Party time for the NDP
It continues to be difficult to tell the winners from the political losers. Although the Liberals won a second consecutive four-year mandate, the mood at their headquarters on election night was nearly funereal. Over at the main NDP bash in Victoria, it was party, party, party. The reason, of course, was the NDP's stunning resurgence. It won 32 seats that had voted Liberal in 2001 and 34 all told.
The same sombre atmosphere seemed to prevail on Wednesday as the Liberals held their first postelection cabinet meeting. Eight members of the cabinet will not be returning to the legislature, so many farewells dampened re-election glee. There were also signs of Liberal softening and, perhaps, an end to the fierce partisanship that often appeared on the government side despite its 77-2 legislative edge for much of the past four years.
Finance Minister Colin Hansen said nice things about working co-operatively with the NDP for the good of the province, Human Resources Minister Murray Coell had some kind words for feisty former New Democrat MLA Joy MacPhail, and Attorney-General Geoff Plant waxed so positively about the democratic benefits of an enhanced opposition that one media wag paraphrased Mr. Plant's remarks as: "It's great that nearly half of my caucus colleagues are gone."
Meanwhile, there was nothing but grins as the newly elected NDP caucus met for the first time. But it was hard to tell the freshly minted MLAs without a program.
Asked to identify some of them from a newspaper picture, Vancouver-Burrard winner (by 12 votes, pending a recount) Tim Stevenson had trouble.
"I think that's the guy from Saanich," Mr. Stevenson said, pointing at an unfamiliar face among those he did know. There was further uncertainty: "I forget that guy's name . . . I don't know her . . . I don't know who that is . . . That guy leaning his head forward, I think he's from Delta . . ."
Unmistakable, however, was Harry Lali, the prickly MLA from Merritt, returning for his third term in Victoria. Mr. Lali was sitting right beside Leader Carole James. "He likes to sit there," an insider said.
Waiting for the call
One of the closest races in the province took place in the lovely riding of Cariboo South. On election night, NDP candidate Charlie Wyse had a one-vote lead over incumbent Walter Cobb. By the next day, the lead had grown to 26 votes, but hundreds of absentee ballots are still to be tabulated, plus an official recount.
Knowing he might yet lose, Mr. Wyse was not quite all there at his party's caucus meeting. Two legs of his chair were inside the room and two legs were outside in the hallway, he joked.
As for Mr. Cobb, he says the waiting is worse than the counting. "The electorate has spoken. It's just taking quite a while for the call to get through," he says. And how does a Cariboo Cobb keep busy in the meantime? He's drywalling his daughter's apartment.