Burnaby resident Martin Kendell will be running as an independent in the upcoming provincial election.
Kendell, who has run in previous municipal and federal elections, will be vying for the MLA seat in Burnaby North.
In the May 2021 Burnaby by-election, Kendell said he would not be accepting outside money for his campaign, which he announced he will be doing again during next month's B.C. election.
“During the Burnaby municipal election, I found out that it was not necessary to spends thousands of dollars to get my campaign’s message out,” he said in a news release on Thursday, Sept. 26, announcing his candidacy.
“I found that I got the best results when I went out all over Burnaby and met people and spoke to them one-on-one and had a chance to listen to them about their concerns in this community.”
Kendell will be running against incumbent BC NDP MLA Janet Routledge and BC Conservative Michael Wu, who was formerly running for BC United.
BC United Leader Kevin Falcon and BC Conservative Leader John Rustad announced an agreement on Aug. 28 to drop BC United candidates and allow the BC Conservatives to draw from a pool of incumbents and candidates.
“Burnaby North residents deserve an MLA who will stand up for them in Victoria about issues that matter to this riding, such as finding proper and innovative solutions to an extraordinarily expensive housing market," Kendell added.
“As well, British Columbia needs someone who will demand reform to a crumbling health care system burdened by bloated bureaucratic salaries and waste, and who will demand BC residents have the right to keep elected officials accountable."
Voting day is Oct. 19 for the 2024 provincial election.
