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B.C. Conservative Leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay prepares to deliver an address to the Union of BC Municipalities meeting in Vancouver on Thursday.Rich Lam/The Canadian Press
BC Conservative Leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay is vowing to lead her fractured party into a potential snap election amid mounting speculation that Premier David Eby could soon send British Columbians to the polls.
Addressing the Union of BC Municipalities convention in Vancouver on Thursday, Ms. Findlay made clear she has no intention of stepping aside, even as fresh allegations surfaced that party funds were used to hire a private investigator to spy on potential critics both inside and outside of her caucus.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Ms. Findlay told the gathering of local government and First Nations leaders.
Her address followed a remarkable month of upheaval for an opposition that came within three seats of forming government in 2024. Leaked recordings have fuelled allegations of misconduct, nine MLAs have quit the Conservative caucus in the past month and police have interviewed some of them over claims of illegal inducements.
Meanwhile, Ms. Findlay is campaigning to secure a seat in the legislature through a Sept. 26 by-election in the riding of Abbotsford-Mission, while preparing for the possibility that Mr. Eby could take advantage of the Conservatives’ weakened state by calling an election two years early.
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On Wednesday, Conservative Party of BC president Mauro Francis informed members by e-mail that former executive director Elaine Allan had allegedly hired a private investigator to “look into your activities” as part of a push to unmask the owner of the “Findlay Files” account on the social-media platform X, three of the recipients confirmed to The Globe and Mail on Thursday.
Sitting Conservative MLA Claire Rattée also confirmed news of the notification publicly, saying she was “deeply troubled” by the allegation.
Ms. Allan was hired as executive director in early August and dismissed by the board the same month. Neither Ms. Allan nor Bruce Hallsor, a lawyer hired by the party to investigate what happened, responded to The Globe’s requests for comment on Thursday.
The Globe is not naming the three e-mail recipients because they said they could not discuss the matter publicly.
Ms. Findlay denied any knowledge of claims that a private investigator had been hired to surveil her critics, including former and sitting Conservative MLAs, an NDP staffer and a journalist. She said her party is looking into the matter.
“This allegation just came forward yesterday,” Ms. Findlay told reporters on Thursday. “I have no details.”
In her prepared remarks to the municipal leaders convention, Ms. Findlay sought to steer attention away from party turmoil and back toward what she called the basics of government, attacking the NDP’s record on the economy, public safety and forestry.
“We all know the routine: big announcement, big promises, rap songs, plaid shirts and then crickets,” Ms. Findlay said, taking a jab at Mr. Eby’s choice of attire at a recent news conference.
She said her party, if elected, would scrap the province’s planned PST expansion, provide municipalities with more stable infrastructure funding and give local governments more say in provincial decisions.
But questions about the party’s internal problems continued in a media scrum that followed her address. After questions about the private investigator allegations, Ms. Findlay was asked for comment on reports that some current Conservative members had asked her to resign as recently as the day before.
“No, I can’t,” Ms. Findlay responded. “That’s up to them to tell you.”
Another reporter asked whether her leadership style was to blame for the recent exodus of MLAs.
“I don’t think it’s my leadership style per se, but of course I take responsibility,” said Ms. Findlay, who was flanked by caucus members.
“There have been adjustments. There have been changes. And what is really important is: Do we have a working team that’s cohesive? And here we are. I’m proud of them all, and we are moving forward together.”
The media availability, scheduled for 20 minutes, was cut off after eight minutes.
Speculation about an early election reached new heights during the week-long convention. On Wednesday, Mr. Eby confirmed that he had lined up interim chief of staff Cheryl Oates as the NDP’s provincial campaign director and that he has told both Elections BC and his caucus to be election-ready.
Elections BC confirmed that it is preparing for an early vote by inquiring about electoral office and voting place availability, restocking supplies and recruiting officials.
“Based on the current landscape in B.C., timelines for procuring election materials in the face of global supply chain challenges and recent public commentary and speculation, we have determined we need to assume an increased readiness state,” the agency said in a statement provided by communications director Colleen Hildebrandt.
Aileen Machell, a communications and strategy consultant and former deputy chief of staff to Mr. Eby, told The Globe that the NDP government is likely weighing the need for stability amid the trade war against more partisan considerations, including its own election readiness and the divisions within the opposition.
Ms. Rattée said in a Substack post published Wednesday that Ms. Findlay had chosen not to attend caucus meetings she herself had called and was not responding to multiple requests for a phone call.
A shifting political landscape could also benefit Mr. Eby, whose approval rating had fallen in recent months, in part over concerns about the province’s finances.
An Angus Reid Institute poll released Wednesday put the Premier’s approval at 41 per cent, up from 31 per cent in June, with the organization pointing to his response to U.S. President Donald Trump as a possible factor in the rebound.
Union of BC Municipalities president Cori Ramsay expressed concern over the potential impact that a snap provincial election could have on the province’s municipal elections, scheduled for Oct. 17.
“Local elections should provide space for discussions for local priorities without being overshadowed by a concurrent provincial campaign,” Ms. Ramsay said Thursday. “UBCM’s concern is fundamentally about protecting the integrity and effectiveness of local democracy.”