Candidates in Nanaimo-Lantzville detail their positions

Four candidates are running for the legislative assembly in the Nanaimo-Lantzville electoral district. From left to right are Sharleen Weatherley for the BC Green Party, George Anderson for the NDP and Pepper Saltman for the Communist Party of BC.

Four candidates are vying to become the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Nanaimo-Lantzville in the provincial election. 

Incumbent BCNDP MLA George Anderson is facing the BC Green’s Sharleen Weatherley , Kelsey Pringle is running for the BC Conservative party and Pepper Saltman from the BC Communist Party.

CHLY spoke with three of the candidates about why they are running and what they can deliver for local residents. An email from a conservative party staffer declined our interview request saying that conservative candidates are focusing on speaking with voters. Questions sent through email were also never answered.

Asked why he was running in the election, Anderson says it was to continue the work he’s done as part of the NDP government.

“ I've had the great fortune and privilege of being the incumbent MLA in Nanaimo-Lantzville for the past two years” he told CHLY. “I was born and raised in this community, and I've helped bring opportunities to young people to ensure that every day people in Nanaimo-Lantzville have access to health care and services where they need it, when they need it.”

“I've helped move forward things such as an urgent and primary care facility in the riding. I've seen the groundbreaking for a new BC Cancer Centre and many other services which are helping enhance Nanaimo-Lantzville. I'm hoping that people will believe that the work that I've done over the past two years has directly benefited them as well and will re-elect me.”

Weatherley says that she’s running to help respond to the “climate crisis”. 

“ We all deserve to live in a province where we feel safe and protected,” she said. “The climate crisis is causing unpredictable climate disasters like wildfires and floods, and these create stress and anxiety for us as we live through these disasters.”

“The Green Party will take steps to protect us from this crisis by transitioning our energy economy away from expensive fossil fuels and instead focus us towards sustainable and more affordable renewable energy sources.

“The Green Party will also work to increase the amount of healthy and diverse land and water ecosystems in our province, like the Rock City wetland, that help our communities be more climate resilient in the face of threats of wildfires, storms, and other climate disasters.”

Saltman says she is running to give workers a choice.

“ I'm running as the candidate for the Communist Party of BC in Nanaimo-Lantzville to give working Nanaimoites a real choice in this election for working class power and good social services,” she said. “David Eby called this snap election while his opponents were unprepared, to try to give British Columbians less choice in this election.

Anderson said that the biggest challenge in the riding is the aging hospital tower and lack of a cardiac centre at the Nanaimo General Hospital.

“When I go to the doorsteps and talk to people in Nanaimo-Lantzville they've told me, ‘George, we need to see a new hospital tower and catheterization lab.’ I've heard them loudly and clearly, and the Premier of our province came to Nanaimo two years ago to address that exact issue,” he said.

Anderson wrote a letter to the Minister of Health in May of 2025 asking for a meeting with his NDP colleague about the hospital.

“I can say along with my colleagues MLA Malcolmson and Higginson, we are seeing movement on that project,” he said. “There is a concept plan currently underway for a new hospital tower. So I would say that is the biggest issue that I've seen having spoken to people in Nanaimo-Lantzville.”

Weatherley  says that the province should focus on improving public transit in the riding.

“ Everyone in our region deserves to be able to independently, safely, and efficiently move around our communities in an affordable way,” she said. “The biggest challenge in provincial jurisdiction for the Central Vancouver Island region is our region's car dependency. Cars are noisy, polluting, and have killed approximately 60 to 80 million people since they were invented.”

Weatherley continued.

“Car infrastructure is incredibly expensive and damaging to local ecosystems and wildlife, and car dependency encourages expensive suburban sprawl. Our communities will be strengthened with the Green Party's priority on investing in fast, frequent, and free public transit. This public transit will increase the accessibility of our region to residents who currently cannot drive for reasons that include age, disability, or finances. This will allow all people in our region to participate fully in our communities,” she said. “The Green Party will also work with First Nations and other stakeholders in order to determine how to best proceed with creating an island rail corridor, which will sustainably  connect our island together. We would also aim to create a multi-use rail trail alongside the railway, allowing eco-tourists the opportunity to hike and bike up and down our island safely, giving them a once-in-a-lifetime eco-tourism experience.

Anderson says education is a top priority for the NDP.

“We've put $242 million over three years to expand trades training across the province. That's five thousand seats [including] new trade seats at Vancouver Island University. So making sure that we're grounding our ambition in a province that is building and leading and ensuring that young people feel that we are building the best province in Canada.”

Weatherley, who is a teacher, says that she would like to work on improving public education in the province.

“Education is a vital part of a thriving society, and all students, teachers, and staff should feel safe and supported in our public school system. The NDP government has not provided enough funding to adequately support our students with disabilities. If elected, I will review the current funding model and develop a new, sustainable, needs-based model that will support the success of all students.”

She would also like to see the province regulate use of artificial intelligence tools in education.

“In public schools today, there are currently no provincial rules regarding the use of AI in classrooms, Weatherley said. “The Green Party will enact a moratorium on the use of AI in K to 12 classrooms in order to develop a plan to ensure ethical AI use for students that has appropriate privacy safeguards.”

Weatherley says that should the Greens form government the party would focus on affordability as well.

“Right now, many of our friends and loved ones are struggling with the costs of basic life necessities like housing, groceries, and transportation,” she said. “With the Green Party's plans to ensure affordable housing, groceries, and transit for all, we will be able to live dignified lives in our beautiful province.”

Saltman says the communists would raise the minimum wage and bring in sectoral bargaining for labour unions. 

“We want to give  workers in BC a lot more power to get good labour contracts and we're going to achieve that with sectoral bargaining in every industry in B.C.,” she said. “Every country that has sectoral bargaining sees get better deals for for workers: better pay and working conditions, and generally more power for workers to  to decide how the workplace is organized.”

Saltman continued.

“We want to bring that to BC and make sure that every British Columbian can get a good deal as a worker. We want to raise the minimum wage to $30, so that the minimum wage is a living wage. We want to make sure that every worker, whether they're domestic, farm, or migrant workers, are all on the same strong labor standard so that nobody is getting shafted and no one is undercutting anyone else.”

Asked  what he can deliver for local residents, Anderson renewed his promise for improved health care. 

“When you see a new urgent primary care facility behind Country Club Mall, you see a new high acuity unit, a BC Cancer Center that's already broken ground, and in Lantzville, a new 298-bed long-term care facility. I think you can trust us to do that. The BC Conservatives, I'm not too sure, because just yesterday they announced a potential income tax cut that would put a three to $4 billion hole in the budget, and one of their MLAs said health care and education are going to need to take the brunt of cuts. We're a government that is taking action, and you can see it here in Nanaimo-Lantzville and throughout central Vancouver Island.”

Saltman said the cardiac centre is a priority for the Communist Party but the province needs to raise taxes on the wealthy to pay for it.

“I want to talk about the cardiac catheterization lab because everyone is talking about it in both the municipal and BC elections in Nanaimo, it seems,” she said. “That's because everybody wants to bring the cath lab to Nanaimo, but not everyone wants to fund it adequately. The BC Conservatives have pledged to raise no new taxes, so they aren't going to be able to fund the new and improved services that British Columbians need.”

“ The NDP have only pledged to raise taxes that will raise an additional $1 billion in government revenue. We pledge to raise $3 billion through it through taxes on the wealthy and corporations and a shift of the tax burden away from working families. And as part of that as well, we're going to eliminate all provincial tax on income under $50,000,” Pepper said.

Voting day for the provincial election is October 24 with advance voting available between October 16th and 21st. For more information on where and how to vote go to elections.bc.ca.

Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.

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