Orange crush: NDP sweeps Burnaby ridings

It was a wild ride Tuesday night at Burnaby’s NDP election headquarters – but, in the end, the ride stopped just where Team Orange wanted it to.

Supporters were riding an emotional rollercoaster as they watched provincial results come in on the big screen at the Burnaby Firefighters’ Public House, with Liberal and NDP results seesawing across the province.

Locally, they had much to celebrate, as the New Democrats captured all four of the city’s ridings: Raj Chouhan in Burnaby-Edmonds, Anne Kang in Burnaby-Deer Lake, Katrina Chen in Burnaby-Lougheed and Janet Routledge in Burnaby North.

Chouhan, the only candidate to arrive early in the evening, was the first whose seat looked secure.

Chouhan earned 9,613 to Liberal opponent Garrison Duke’s 5,852, returning him to office with an easy margin.

He appeared relaxed through the night, chatting with supporters and watching with a smile as his Burnaby compatriots began to take the lead in their respective ridings.

“This was the first time all four campaigns worked so close together, each and every day,” he said in his victory speech, adding a heartfelt thank you to the volunteers. “We only won because of you.”

Chouhan was enthusiastic in his welcome to Kang – who arrived shortly before 10 p.m., beaming and carrying a bouquet of flowers.

“Now we have a very dynamic new MLA for Burnaby-Deer Lake,” he said to the cheers of the crowd.

Kang herself – accompanied by her husband, Diego Lin, and seven-year-old son, Theodore – couldn’t stop smiling after she pulled off a decisive win over Liberal challenger Karen Wang, who took 4,250 votes to Kang’s 5,543.

“I’m so thrilled! I can’t believe I was elected,” she said in an interview with the NOW after her victory speech.

On a night when the fate of many ridings still hung in the balance, Kang attributed her victory to all the time she and her team put in to talk to voters – and to take the time to really listen.

“It’s just being in the community all the time. It’s the community connections I have built,” she said.

Kang told the crowd she made the jump from municipal to provincial politics because she understands what an important role the British Columbia government plays in people’s lives.

“As a teacher and a mother, I was driven by a passion for improving education and services for kids, including child care and better health care,” she said. “This election was all about you. It was about building a better B.C. for every British Columbian.”

The other two candidates, Katrina Chen and Janet Routledge, had not shown up at NDP headquarters by Burnaby NOW deadlines.

But, by the end of the night, both had posted victories. Chen had 9,845 votes to Liberal Steve Darling's 7,698, while Routledge had 9,057 votes to Liberal Richard T. Lee's 7,816.