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The B.C. NDP caucus has announced Jennifer Whiteside as its choice for the party’s new interim leader.
The caucus recommended Whiteside after David Eby resigned as party leader when his snap election call resulted in a resounding defeat of the NDP at the polls.
Eby’s majority government fell from 47 seats in the legislature to 28, according to the initial count.
At a caucus meeting Thursday, Mike Farnworth was named house leader and Niki Sharma was named caucus chair.
Whiteside said it was a unanimous recommendation.
The B.C. NDP’s constitution requires its provincial council to vote on the interim leader after considering the recommendations of the caucus.
Eby wasn’t at the in-person caucus meeting, nor was he present virtually, Whiteside said.
Whiteside said she was humbled by the caucus’s recommendation.
“It is not an outcome I was necessarily expecting,” she said.
She said she’s looking forward to using her advocacy skills in the role.
Whiteside, MLA-elect for New Westminster-Coquitlam, previously worked as chief spokesperson and lead negotiator for the Hospital Employees’ Union.
She said the caucus meeting included discussions on what the community needs.
“We are very focused on making sure that British Columbians understand that we are standing for them, that we have their backs, and we will continue to do that work in the opposition caucus.”
The B.C. NDP will serve as Official Opposition to Lorne Doerkson’s B.C. Conservative Party, which won 63 seats.
