New BC NDP leader Adrian Dix. Photograph by: Adrian MacNair
This was, again, rather a fluke, but when I returned from North Vancouver today I saw that the BC NDP leadership convention wasn’t over yet so I headed over to see who the winner would be. When I arrived at 5:30 they had just showed the second ballot and Adrian Dix was the frontrunner with 7,748 votes, Mike Farnworth at 6,951 votes and John Horgan at 5,034 votes. So Dix and Farnworth went to a final ballot, with Dix being chosen the new leader at 9,772 to 9,095 votes.
You can get this information on any news website, but I thought I’d post up some of the photos I managed to take. It was funny because during the lull the large screens showed the Canucks game and the crowd was louder for the two goals that were scored in the second period than they were for Adrian Dix.
My camera didn’t perform very well inside the building either, so I’ve chosen only the best six. Click on the images for the high resolution version if you so desire. I took pictures of MLA Jenny Kwan and city councillor Kerry Jang but those didn’t turn out.
His win should make the liberals very happy. The man does not have a pristine past and is not what the NDP needed.
Well, the NDP have just shot themselves in the belly, never mind the foot.
If Horgan or Farnworth had won, I was going to consider the impossible and vote NDP to see Clark and the corporatist BC Liberal horde run out of office.
…but with Dix at the helm, the will definitely not be getting my vote.
It’s interesting how these things go. Farnworth was the front-runner and then Dix came up and stole it. Reminds me of Ed Stelmach in Alberta a few years back.
Just wow. The worst possible choice they could have made. But then, if they could think and learn then they wouldn’t be who they are.
More good photos. I like your lead photo of Dix at the top of the page. Very nice.
I’m guessing that you just didn’t have enough light for your Jenny Kwan photo – pretty tough in a big room without having a big flash unit.
For years I used a Vivitar 283 and a 285HV, but I’m leery about using the 285HV on the D40 as some of them were not compatible with the new digital cameras and can damage them. I’ve tested the voltage on the flash, and I think it will be OK, but I don’t want to risk burning out a $450 camera to test it. Nikon Speedlights are not cheap – the small 400 is about $150 plus taxes in Vancouver, and not likely to get any cheaper until the Japanese are up an running again in a couple of years.
You were a busy guy today, Adian. Good work!
Just to echo some of the above comments, as a small c conservative I’ve got exactly ZERO loyalty to Christy Clark, and a ‘Mike Harcourt’ type of NDP leader might have attracted my vote. I was impressed with Mr. Farnsworth and I liked John Horgan (although not necessarily his policies). I would crawl over broken glass to NOT vote for Adrian Dix, who IMHO is the worst kind of provincial NDPer. One who constantly claimed that the Provincial Gov’t was cutting health care when the the health care budget went up EVERY SINGLE YEAR!, One who constantly rabble rouses with the class warfare dog whistles, who never met a corporation or private industry that he didn’t despise or want to increase taxes on, never met a competing politician that he could even say a civil thing to or about: not even an ‘agree to disagree’. This guy is Glen Clark squared and if you think politics was acrimonious in the Campbell era you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.
I have been following the “new” BC Conservatives – new leader too. Might just do it for me but could put the NDP into power at least for 4 years – the Libs will self destruct IMO
Come on folks, I was just waiting for someone to say -
We are all Dix today!