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Decafnation recommends Will Cole-Hamilton for Courtenay-Comox riding
Decafnation wholeheartedly recommends voters choose Will Cole-Hamilton to represent the Courtenay-Comox riding in the Provincial Legislature.
Cole-Hamilton, a law school graduate, former small business owner and two-term Courtenay City Council member, is running on the New Democratic Party ticket. He is by far the most qualified candidate.
During his recent City Council term, Cole-Hamilton chaired the B.C. delegation of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and was instrumental in creating the group’s first-ever policy on Department of Defense issues. Municipalities are often under pressure to make costly changes to accommodate DND activities, like expansions that come with a cost to local taxpayers.
Cole-Hamilton’s policy created a National Task Force to help municipalities like Courtenay and Comox get a fair deal with the DND.
That’s going to be important as the Comox Valley prepares for a $3 billion expansion at CFB Comox. His provincial and federal contacts and credentials position him to help local governments and businesses navigate this major change.
And, he has proven his expertise in government finances and his environmentalist sensibilities during his eight years serving the City of Courtenay.
We could go on about his personal qualifications, but there is another important reason to vote for Cole-Hamilton: To ensure this swing riding does not help the dangerous BC Conservative Party from forming the next provincial government.
Conservative Party incumbent MLA Brennan Day won in 2024 by just 93 votes, 13,481 to Ronn-Rae Leonard’s 13,388. The Green Party candidate, Arzeena Hamir, finished a distant third with 7,202 votes.
THE CONS ARE DANGEROUS
But this isn’t the same Conservative Party of two years ago. Since then, the Cons have been hijacked by a Maple-MAGA hard-right contingent that no longer represents small-c conservative values.
At the riding’s only all-candidates forum, Cole-Hamilton showed his calm, patient and thoughtful nature. He focused on the future. By comparison, his opponent Brennan Day expressed anger and focused on the past.
Day didn’t talk about what a Conservative BC government would do, because it’s not appealing. If you help to elect Day, here’s the kind of values you’ll be supporting, expressed by his colleagues:
Sheldon Clare said local politicians “need hanging.” Kristina Loewen compared pandemic rules to the Holocaust. Sharon Hartwell said the 2020 election was “stolen” from Trump. Bryan Tepper said the Jan. 6 riot in the U.S. Capitol was a “lie.” David Willians shared a map of Western Canada as a U.S. protectorate.
The list of shocking statements by Day’s Conservative colleagues is long, and they reveal the party’s strong contingent of Trucker Convoy and Maple-MAGA mentality.
This Conservative Party introduced a bill to repeal the BC Human Rights Code. All Conservatives voted for it. It failed because the NDP and Green voted against it, but if the Conservative Party is elected, they will toss out human rights in this province.
The Conservatives have pledged to prohibit public schools from offering sexual health education programs, such as SOGI. They want cops in schools, against the advice of the BC Civil Liberties Association, who believe it impacts marginalized and disabled students and potentially escalates behavioral issues. The party’s leader promises to repeal the provincial DRIPA on day one.
Since his Conservative Party imploded with dysfunction and allegations of racism, homophobia and residential school denialism, Day has presented a ‘moderate’ image in the Comox Valley. But driving around in an EV car doesn’t change the fact that he has aligned himself with a hard-right movement that mostly still doesn’t believe in climate science or vaccines.
Elect the Conservative Party and you’ll also kiss ICBC goodbye. During his campaign in 2024, Day promoted his party’s plan to eliminate the ICBC monopoly on car insurance by opening the market up to private insurance.
Even if they don’t completely eliminate ICBC, insurance rates will skyrocket because the party plans to kill the current no-fault insurance system. It will be a gift to personal injury lawyers who will once again bilk ICBC with no significant benefit to the majority of vehicle owners.
Since the Horgan NDP government stabilized the Crown Corporation finances and Eby’s administration introduced the no-fault plan, rates have been frozen for seven years. Yet, in 2024, Day called ICBC a failed experiment.
Even if you’re feeling critical of the NDP, this version of the BC Conservative Party is the worst-case scenario for British Columbians. And a vote for the Green Party in this riding is a vote that helps them get elected.
IT’S THE MONEY, HONEY
The Green Party’s logic is baffling. Why do they field candidates in swing ridings like Courtenay-Comox where they guarantee a Conservative Party victory? It makes no sense, unless it’s a money grab. The Green Party gets an “annual allowance” distributed by Elections BC, a per-vote subsidy. The amount is calculated on the percentage of valid votes their endorsed candidates win in the election and was pegged at $1.89 per vote in 2026. The more candidates, the more votes, the bigger the party’s annual allowance.
Still, why not just run candidates in ridings where the Conservative are less strong. In some ridings, voting Green might be the correct strategic vote. But not here.
Marking your ballot for the Green Party candidate in Courtenay-Comox is a wasted vote. It achieves nothing – the Greens have no hope of winning this riding. And it hurts the greenest candidate running – Will Cole-Hamilton.
In fact, a vote for the Green Party in Courtenay-Comox riding only benefits the BC Conservative Party.
PROVINCIAL VOTING LOCATIONS
COURTENAY-COMOX
Advance voting — Former Leeward Liquor Store — Fri-Wed Oct 16-21 Courtenay-Comox Native Sons Hall — Fri Oct 16 — Sun-Mon Oct 18-19, –Wed Oct 21 Courtenay-Comox United Mennonite Church Black Creek 2 — Mon-Wed Oct 19-21
On Saturday, Oct. 24 — Airport Elem School — Arden Elem School — Brooklyn Elem School — Comox Comm Centre — Courtenay Elem School — Courtenay Lawn Bowling Club — Mark R. Isfeld Sec School — N.I.D.E.S – Tsolum School — Queneesh Elem School — The Salvation Army Community Church — United Mennonite Church Black Creek — École Robb Road, Comox
MID-ISLAND PACIFIC
On Saturday, Oct. 24 — Cumberland Rec Centre — Denman Island Seniors Hall — Hornby Island Athletic Hall — Royston Elem School
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Will Cole-Hamilton bucks the trend, flips Courtenay Comox riding to NDP
More than four thousand fewer Green Party voters showed up this year and incumbent Conservative MLA Brennan Day lost 787 votes as the NDP won in Courtenay-Comox by about a three percent margin. The ‘blue wave’ was strong across the province, however, taking 64 of the 93 seats in the BC Legislature
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It’s U-Pick’em time tomorrow, choose carefully from this wild and crazy crop of candidates
The Post War and Boomer Babies forgot to do a bunch of stuff, or just left it undone because they were too scared to raise taxes. So, when the millennials came along in 2018 they started cleaning up the mess. Now the city may fall into the hands of a wild and crazy bunch of newcomers. So let’s talk taxes, debt, pools, water meters and, once again, the Puntledge Triangle.
Just a quick note that the election canvasser for Will Cole-Hamilton who knocked on my door yesterday was driving the same EV that Brennan Day has: a blue & white VW ID.Buzz! I had to laugh, though I am of course unsure of which one bought theirs first.
Btw, I have an EV also (a VW ID.4)
While Decafnation clearly articulates why it backs Will Cole-Hamilton locally, no endorsement can ignore the broader governing record of the BC NDP. In our FPTP system every local ballot is directly a vote for the party’s executive power. Evaluating “another” mandate poses serious concerns. 1) BC shifted from balanced budgets to structural, double-digit-billion deficits, triggering credit rating downgrades as operational spending continually outpaces revenue. 2) Despite record funding increases, rolling emergency room closures plague small regional communities, and hundreds of thousands of people still lack a family doctor. 3) Mayors and business associations have repeatedly sounded alarms over street disorder and repeat offenders, worsened by reactive policy whiplash around drug decriminalization. 4) Top-down provincial zoning mandates have not relieved nation-leading rent rates, while regulatory uncertainty surrounding DRIPA and land-use policies has chilled private resource investment. Concerns about opposition candidates are understandable. However, dismissing all critical voters as “Maple-MAGA” ignores the quiet majority of moderates who are genuinely alarmed by spiraling debt and declining public services. After nearly a decade in power, the NDP should be judged on real frontline results, not just fear of the alternative.
What a shame this was received so late. Many locals have already voted.
If your focus in voting is to support environmental protection/climate change issues then voting NDP is your only viable choice. If our system was proportional representation rather than first past the post you might make a case for a Green vote but we are operating as a first past the post system. Reality is that whether they call themselves Socreds, Liberals or Consevative, the Soc-Con-Libs are an environmentally disastrous choice that nonetheless always has a base of unwavering support and if the environtmally conscious split their support they will help to elect a Conservative. While proportional representation does seem a better electoral system that is NOT how this election will be counted so unless you support the platform of the Cons it may be best to support the NDP as the ony alternative party with a realistic chance of winning this riding
I am concerned about the implication that the Greens are just in it for the money. Their candidate in our riding has a strong and committed record of public service. Do you have some evidence that the Greens are only running candidates to gain access to the $1.89/vote? It’s a pretty damming allegation.
Do we not want a diverse range of opinions on the table to help whoever is our MLA bring thoughtful ideas reflectful of our whole community to the table?
The Green candidate in the last election was also a very strong and committed member of the community. Like the present candidate however, she too had no realistic chance of representing us in Victoria. As for funding from the per vote allowance , in 2024 the local Greens receieved about $13,600 in per vote funding from Elections BC . Important funds to be sure, but rather than voting Green on that basis why not vote for the NDP as a logical “most green” alternative…an alternative with a realistic chance of being elected. To compensate for lost funding donate about $5 to the Greens… $1.89 for the vote the Greens didn’t get, the same amount because the NDP would have recieved more funding as a result of your vote, and round up to give the Greens an extra boost. The best the Greens can hope for in 2026 is to elect representatives in at the very most 4 or 5 ridings, and thus to perhaps hold a balance of power in a minority government. This is NOT one of those winnable ridings. If you feel you have to pinch your nose to vote NDP, remember that though one may be tired of the concept of strategic voting, with our present first past the post winner take all system, in this election this riding WILL go to the aptly named CONs if the progressive vote is split.How hard do you have to hold your nose then, and for how long.
Candidates of the NDP share responsibility for the actions of the Party. And the NDP has not been honest or effective. While Cole-Hamilton has legal training it’s time we have representatives that have a scientific grasp of the challenges and opportunities facing us.
Speaking of the NDP not being honest…NDP Premier David Eby admitted (when questioned by a Global News reporter on Oct 12, 2026) that he and his physician wife use a $10 per day, taxpayer funded daycare for their children.
It is unconscionable that BC’s NDP Premier – who receives a 6-figure income – would feel entitled to access subsidized daycare. His children occupy daycare spaces intended for lower incomes families who most likely struggle a great deal more than David Eby to pay high childcare costs.
Although universal $10 per day childcare has been one of the NDP government’s longstanding promises, in February 2026 they paused new enrolment and further expansion of spaces and imposed a 3-year freeze on $10 per day childcare.
Hi, Your positive report on what Eby did for ICBC insurance rates with no fault insurance is accurate but not the whole picture. If you got into an accident and suffered aggravated injuries and needed rehab and equipment to have any quality of life, forget about it with no fault. with the old type of ICBC insurance you could get a lawyer and sue if ICBC did not give you services. Check it out.
George — your grasp of the Greens is certainly limited, and misguided. Very disappointed in your weak and flawed analysis of the Green-Con-NDP dynamics in Courtenay-Comox. I’d love to say more, but have to run to an appointment. Perhaps later– either on this site, or privately if you let me know how to reach you.
yeah. Let’s just keep on doing the same old same old. Give our vote and public party financing to the dear old party still married to FPTP because up until now it worked for them. Lost my vote with Site-C , LNG and logging old growth.
Oct. 20/26
I’m worried about your comment , “don’t vote for the Greens again”.
Tired of having to vote strategically (for the NDP) to dodge the Conservatives, this election I voted in Advance and FOR the Green candidate.
Planning to spoil this ballot (going to a Voting Place to be counted) due to the lack of quality and environmental courage by the NDP leader (and with no Conservative inclination in 7 decades), voting Green was showing how much it matters that they exist and one day will have more say in the legislature.
Proportional Representation would give us all a voice. That’s what democracy is.
I’m disappointed that Decafnation is doubling down on the “vote strategically” message. I beg to differ. A vote for the Green candidate is NOT a vote for the Conservatives; it is a vote for Green values and a liveable future. I understand all the reasons not to vote for the Conservative candidate (though Brennan Day has done an excellent job as our MLA), but a vote for Will Cole-Hamilton is a vote for an MLA who won’t be allowed to have an independent voice in the Legislature. Remember, Ronna-Rae Leonard had two terms as our NDP MLA and the Greens, both times had 18+% of the vote. There seems to be a shift in this riding toward the Greens – gradual, but nonetheless a shift. Brennan Day wouldn’t have won last time if BC United and the BC Conservatives hadn’t folded into each other at the last minute.
I’m dissapointed that Decafnation is doubling down on the “vote strategically” message. I beg to differ. A vote for the Green candidate is NOT a vote for the Conservatives; it is a vote for Green values and a liveable future. I understand all the reasons not to vote for the Conservative candidate (though Brennan Day has done an excellent job as our MLA), but a vote for Will Cole-Hamilton is a vote for an MLA who won’t be allowed to have an independent voice in the Legislature. Remember, Ronna-Rae Leonard had two terms as our NDP MLA and the Greens, both times had 18+% of the vote. There seems to be a shift in this riding toward the Greens – gradual, but nonetheless a shift. Brennan Day wouldn’t have won last time if BC United and the BC Conservatives hadn’t folded into each other at the last minute.
So, let’s talk strategy. There are essentially two Conservative candidates this time around. They will split the Conservative vote. If fewer people voted NDP and threw their votes to the BC Greens, then the NDP would lose it’s one (1) respresentative “majority” and would be forced to seek support from the Greens. Then, we’d actually have a Green voice in Victoria to force the NDP to re-think LNG and charging very low water rates to industrial users. Additionally, the Greens don’t whip their MLAs’votes unlke the NDP. Why Will Cole-Hamilton is running as an NDP when his votes will be whipped is beyond me to understand.
Hi George,
We voted for Brennan Day. When we met with him about timely access to health care, and impact of the unhoused, intoxicated unfortunate , unpredictable people on Cliffe Ave. and local parks, he said there is solution , but the NDP have spent all the money and there is no funding for appropriate facilities for the addicted/ mentally ill.
While he offered no solution, he did say that there should be a study on the economics and impacts of the present “do nothing” model vs appropriate facilities, treatment.
If elected, we expect Brennan Day to deliver on a study and see real progress on timely access to health care and community safety. We plan to follow up , if he is elected.
Phil – that is exactly the problem with the Conservatives! They are all talk with NO plan. It’s easy to critize and hard to govern. Governing means actually putting into action all your vague mother-earth-and-apple pie notions.
Did you listen to the televised debate?!?
If elected you will be sorely disappointed. Just look south of our border!
Bravo George!
Thanks for helping us read between the lines on the Conservative Party’s platform. Though I voted Green in 2024, Cole-Hamilton’s strong environmental record changes everything this time.
Enlightening comments and insights about the political arena in the Valley