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May 30, 2026 | |||
| |||
| Date | May 30, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Resigning leader | John Rustad |
| Won by | TBD |
| Candidates | 9 |
| Entrance fee | $115,000 |
| Spending limit | $2,000,000 |
In 2026, the Conservative Party of British Columbia will hold a leadership election to choose a permanent leader to replace Trevor Halford, who became leader on an interim basis following the resignation of John Rustad. Rustad announced his resignation after a caucus revolt and internal party disputes on December 4, 2025. [1] [2]
Rustad, who was acclaimed leader in 2023, led his party into the 2024 British Columbia general election as the principal opposition party following BC United's decision to suspend its campaign and endorse Rustad's party. Preceding this, several BC United MLAs had defected to the Conservatives as opinion polls showed the party, which had no representation in the Legislative Assembly in decades, gaining momentum. The Conservatives won 44 seats, the party's best showing in over 70 years; the party hadn't won more than two seats in an election since 1953. On November 20, Rustad established his Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet, in which every Conservative MLA received a portfolio. [3] Following the election, Rustad passed his leadership review with 70.66% support in 2025. His leadership in Opposition was marked by internal strife, with the departures and expulsions of many MLAs and the formation of a splinter party named OneBC.
On December 3, 2025, 20 caucus members signed a letter calling for Rustad to resign his position as leader. The party's board of directors passed a resolution ousting him as leader, and appointed Surrey-White Rock MLA Trevor Halford as interim leader. In a statement, the party said that Rustad was too "professionally incapacitated" to continue as leader. [4] However, in the immediate aftermath, five Conservative MLAs refused to acknowledge the board's decision and said that Rustad remained party leader, [5] and Rustad himself rejected the board's decision and declared that he was still the leader of the party. The next day, the Western Standard reported that Rustad would step down as leader, and shortly after he announced his resignation. [6] During his resignation speech, he announced that he would also not stand for re-election at the next election. [7] [8]
Candidates must pay a $5,000 application fee, a mandatory $20,000 refundable rules compliance deposit, and a total of $110,000 in non-refundable fees to remain in the race. The deadline to submit candidacy applications is February 15; they must contain 250 member signatures from at least five of the province's regions. Once approved, candidates must pay a second $10,000 fee, followed by $40,000 by April 1, and $60,000 by April 18. There will be a $2,000,000 spending limit, with 20% of all monthly donations going to the party. The election itself will be held using a weighted electoral district system, with each provincial riding allocated 100 points; ridings with fewer than 100 ballots will be allocated points equal to the number of votes cast. The winner must receive more than 50% of the vote, as there will be candidate eliminations in every round of counting held. In order to be eligible to vote members must sign up by April 18. Members must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident normally residing in British Columbia and at least 14 years of age. [9] [10]
| Candidate | Experience | Announcement date | Slogan | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bruce Banman |
| February 2, 2026 | "Conservative Without Apology" | [27] |
| Harman Bhangu |
| February 18, 2026 | "Let's Rebuild BC Together" | [24] [28] |
| Iain Black |
| January 15, 2026 | "Get BC Back on Track" | [29] [16] [30] |
| Caroline Elliott |
| January 13, 2026 | "Win For BC" | [15] [31] |
Kerry-Lynne Findlay |
| January 29, 2026 | "More Freedom Less Government!" | [20] |
 Yuri Fulmer |
| January 6, 2026 | "Real Leadership" | [13] [32] |
| Warren Hamm |
| December 15, 2025 | "Builders-Not Bureaucrats" | [11] [33] |
| Darrell Jones |
| January 27, 2026 | [34] [19] | |
 Peter Milobar |
| January 16, 2026 | "Ready to Lead BC" | [35] [36] |
| Candidate | Experience | Announcement date | Withdrawal date | Slogan | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 8, 2026 | February 27, 2026 | "It's Clear – It's Clare" | [37] [38] | |
 Steve Kooner |
| February 3, 2026 | February 27, 2026 | "Bring Back BC" | [39] [40] |
| Polling source | Link | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Harman Bhangu | Iain Black | Caroline Elliott | Kerry-Lynne Findlay | Yuri Fulmer | Darrell Jones | Peter Milobar | Other/ Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pallas Data | [75] | March 2, 2026 | 1,256 | +/- 2.8% | 4% | 7% | 15% | 7% | 3% | 7% | 9% | Other 2% Undecided 47% |
| Polling source | Link | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Iain Black | Sheldon Clare | Caroline Elliott | Kerry-Lynne Findlay | Yuri Fulmer | Aaron Gunn | Darrell Jones | Peter Milobar | Other/ Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clare and Kooner drop out | |||||||||||||
| Pallas Data | [76] | February 15–19, 2026 | 401 | +/- 3.1% | 6% | – | 16% | 3% | 2% | – | 9% | 5% | Other 5% Undecided 54% |
| Western Standard | [77] | January 2026 | 578 | – | 8.5% | 18.4% | 17.1% | – | 20.5% | – | 16.7% | 18.8% | Undecided 47.4% |
| Gunn declines to run | |||||||||||||
| Mainstreet Research | [78] | December 17–18, 2025 | 1,902 | – | 4% | – | 1% | 1% | 1% | 18% | – | 6% | Other 3% Undecided 66% |
| Pallas Data | [79] | December 11–13, 2025 | 923 | – | 1% | – | 8% | 10% | 1% | 23% | – | 8% | Other 4% Undecided 44% |
Italic indicates future election | |
| General elections | |
| By-elections | |
| Leadership elections | |
| Other elections | |
