Nervously waiting
The official slogan at Liberal headquarters is “Keep Calm and Christy On.”
However, the mood in in the Fairmont Waterfront ballroom is anything but calm. The rapid fire cheers and applause that erupted shortly after the polls closed have decidedly changed to nervous navel gazing — attendees constantly checking their phones and staring at screens as results roll in.
Very few Liberal incumbents have arrived yet, while the overall number of party supporters and campaign staff has leveled off.
The nervous mood in the room is reflected by the seesaw polling results. The last numbers shown for Vancouver False Creek had Liberal incumbent Sam Sullivan ahead by approximately 800 votes, with less than 50 per cent of the polls reported.
Overall, as of 10 p.m., polls had the NDP and Liberals at a dead heat.
--John Kurucz
Vancouver False Creek riding: Sullivan has a winning losing strategy
Sam Sullivan hasn’t strayed from his election day strategy for two decades.
“For every election, what I do is I imagine I’m going to lose,” said the Liberal incumbent for Vancouver False Creek. “I get through my stages of grieving, rejection, denial and finally acceptance.”
The former mayor of Vancouver and long-serving city councillor spoke to the Courier within minutes of the polls closing, from a private third floor suite, away from the ballroom at the Fairmont Waterfront where Liberal MLAs were beginning to convene and await election results.
When asked about his election day routine, Sullivan said he relies on the status quo. “I just try to keep myself calm. I don’t get too excited. I don’t vary from my routine at all.”
While connecting with constituents during the campaign, he touted fiscal prudence, a focus on the economy and his track record in public life.
Sullivan was first elected to the legislature in 2013. His main opponents this election are Green Party candidate Bradley Shende and the NDP’s Morgane Oger who would become the first openly transgender MLA in B.C. history if she wins.
-- John Kurucz
