BC Conservative Management Committee Signs Letter Calling on Party Leader Rustad to Resign

Seven members of the B.C. Conservative Party’s top decision-making team are calling on party Leader John Rustad to resign.

In an Oct. 21 letter, the B.C. Conservative Party’s board of directors management committee describes a state of disorder in the party since it became B.C.’s Official Opposition last fall, saying that Rustad has failed to unite members. The letter called on him to step down as leader “immediately.”

“While leadership inevitably involves navigating challenging circumstances, the constant and prolonged discord shows no signs of abating,” reads the letter. “The resulting state of chaos—driven by a series of decisions and actions taken under your leadership—has destabilized the party’s internal cohesion and diminished its public credibility.”

The letter cites the party’s declining poll numbers, shrinking membership, weak fundraising results, and departure of members as proof that Rustad’s leadership has weakened the party’s “public credibility” and dampened grassroots support.

The letter is signed by party President Aisha Estey along with Ndellie Massey, Troy Lanigan, Sacha Peter, Wesley Graham, Andre Roberge, and Mauro Francis, representing all elected board members with the exception of Pavneet Singh.

The letter thanks Rustad for his help in turning the B.C. Conservatives into the biggest Official Opposition in the history of the province, but says it’s time for the “next chapter.”

Rustad told reporters on Oct. 22 that he does not plan to resign as party leader. Under the party’s rules, Rustad cannot be forced out of his role as leader. Last month, Rustad won his leadership review with 71 percent support from party members.

MLA Exits

Rustad became leader of the party in 2022, bringing it to a record result in last October’s election with 44 members elected to the B.C. legislature, making the party the biggest Official Opposition elected in provincial history.

That number has since dwindled to 39 MLAs following the expulsion or resignation of five members from the party. The governing B.C. New Democratic Party holds 47 seats in the B.C. legislature. An Abacus poll this week put the NDP 7 percent ahead of the B.C. Conservatives among decided voters.

Former Conservative MLA Amelia Boultbee left the party Oct. 20 to sit as an independent, calling on Rustad to resign and accusing him of a lack of integrity over controversy surrounding the party’s latest leadership review. Boultbee said she will work with fellow former Conservative MLA Elenore Sturko as an independent but said she would consider rejoining the Conservatives if Rustad is no longer leading the party.

Rustad responded to her departure by saying he was worried about Boultbee’s mental health and implied she had been leaking information to the media.

Sturko was ejected by the party shortly after the leadership review results on Sept. 22. Sturko said she and a group of MLAs had “concerns” about the way the leadership review had been conducted, while Rustad said there were certain “issues” with Sturko that could not be resolved.

Former Conservative MLA Dallas Brodie was expelled from the party in March because of comments she made about Canadian residential schools, and former Conservative MLAs Tara Armstrong and Jordan Kealy left the party in solidarity. Armstrong and Brodie formed the OneBC party in mid-June, while Kealy sits as an independent.

Further controversy occurred earlier this month when Rustad fired communications staffer Lindsay Shepherd because of comments she made on social media. She said the recognition of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation with an orange flag and orange shirt spreads “untruths about Canadian history.”