George Abbott endorsement slammed by B.C. Young Liberal leaders at UBC, SFU

The heads of the UBC and SFU branches of the B.C. Young Liberals are upset that executives of their provincial organization have publicly endorsed party leadership contender George Abbott.

UBC club president Katherine Tyson and SFU club president James Plett are calling on the B.C. Young Liberal executive to retract a press release sent out earlier today (November 29).

Tyson and Plett, who are both members of the B.C. Young Liberals’ provincial board of directors, issued today the following letter:

Fellow BC Young Liberals,

Recently, the provincial BC Young Liberal (BCYL) Executive has circulated a press release which suggests that the BCYL collectively endorses one particular candidate for the leadership of the British Columbia Liberal Party. In reality, only three BCYL Vice Presidents and one past-president are named as tendering such an endorsement. Constitutionally, the BCYL is constitutionally governed by a Board of Directors, a larger body of youth representatives comprising more than a dozen members. The majority of the Directors have made no official declaration endorsing a particular candidate. No BCYL Board of Directors representatives from either UBC or SFU, including the current club Presidents of both clubs, and the two most recent past club Presidents of UBC, were either consulted in, or consented to, the endorsement of Minsiter Abbott for Leader.

Both the SFU BCYL and UBC BCYL believe that every BC Young Liberal has the right to make their own choice when it comes to how best to renew our party. While certain individual officers of BCYL may be empowered to make certain administrative decisions on behalf of the youth, they do not speak for BCYL youth when it comes to this choice. The executives of both the UBC BCYL and SFU BCYL encourage all members to get involved in the Leadership process, to attend events and learn what the various candidates have to offer in the lead up to the Februrary 26 Leadership Convention. Only two candidates have formally announced their intent to run, although more are expected to declare over the next few weeks

In the release in question, B.C. Young Liberal vice presidents Maz Artang, Shahin Behroyan, and Lindsay Gardner and past president Chris Sandve announced that they are endorsing Abbott in the race to replace Premier Gordon Campbell.

The release stated that the four youth leaders represent the “entire membership” of the B.C. Young Liberal executive, except for president Donny van Dyk, who is staying neutral due to his seat on the B.C. Liberal Party executive.

It also said that Geoff Sharpe, Kevin Skrepnek, and Hannah Drought—the presidents of the B.C. Young Liberal clubs at the University of Victoria, Kwantlen Polytechnic University, and Okanagan College, respectively—are endorsing Abbott.

Artang, Gardner, and Sharpe are cochairing Abbott’s youth campaign.

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