The gathering of the BC NDP faithful at this past weekend’s bi-annual convention revealed a political party that has settled comfortably into government and is hungrily looking to the next election.
Even though trouble signs abound – a deteriorating economy, a forest industry in crisis and a sudden spate of labour disputes - the New Democrats I talked to seemed confident.
A big reason is their leader, Premier John Horgan. He gave a somewhat rambling keynote speech that patiently detailed platform commitments that have been kept.
It was a classic mid-mandate speech. No fireworks or emotion of the kind you might hear on the eve of an election, rather a just-the-facts recitation of accomplishments.
He also tried out a routine aimed squarely at his chief opponent, BC Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson. Horgan sarcastically mocked him as a “regular guy” who he said romanticizes the renting life, protects gas companies and holds fundraisers at yacht clubs.
I have a feeling this was setting the stage for a theme in the next election campaign - painting Wilkinson as a remote patrician out of touch with real people. In other words, the precise opposite of a “regular guy.”
Meanwhile, while more than 600 convention delegates heard speeches and debated resolutions, 300 teachers gathered in the next room to blast the NDP for its position in contract talks with the BC Teachers’ Federation.
Here you had hundreds of teachers – all clad in red t-shirts – literally (and politely) in the face of New Democrats, yet there was an almost blasé response from the side being attacked.
At one point, I was standing outside the convention centre with about two dozen of the red-shirted teachers, getting ready to interview BCTF president Teri Mooring. Who should walk through the crowd at that moment than none other than a smiling Carole James, the finance minister in charge of teacher contract negotiations.
To say she seemed unperturbed is a serious understatement.
The NDP caucus and cabinet have slowly but surely got their heads around the inevitable difficulties that come with governing, and the necessary compromises and position changes that come with it. This means supposed “friends” from the years in opposition (such as the BCTF) may turn on you.
For years, NDP conventions were somewhat gloomy affairs of political activists seemingly stuck forever in opposition, frustrated by a chronic inability to affect change. The convention after the 2017 election win was understandably mostly a celebratory affair.
This year’s gathering reflected the reality that the party seems to have accepted. Not everything can be done at once, and that change – while happening quickly on some fronts - is often a long-term game.
On the eve of the convention, Horgan told reporters he figures his party has achieved about 80 per cent of its commitments. He is confident the remaining 20 per cent will be successfully dealt with before the next election.
Maybe, maybe not. But either way, the NDP finds itself in a pretty good spot less than two years out from the next vote.
Keith Baldrey is chief political reporter for Global BC.
