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Houston Mayor Shane Brienen remains undecided about provincial political future

Houston mayor Shane Brienen remains undecided about a potential future in provincial politics. Named last fall as the B.C.
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Houston mayor Shane Brienen.

Houston mayor Shane Brienen remains undecided about a potential future in provincial politics.

Named last fall as the B.C. United candidate for the Nechako Lakes riding, Brienen and the party's other candidates were cast adrift by party leader Kevin Falcon the end of August when he suspended the B.C. United campaign leading up to the Oct. 19 provincial election in favour of supporting the B.C. Conservative party.

Falcon said it was necessary to abandon the B.C. United campaign in favour of joining with the provincial Conservatives to stop the the NDP from being re-elected.

Brienen's situation is unique in that while other B.C. United candidates have found a home as candidates for the provincial Conservative party, he doesn't have that option because Nechako Lakes is held by provincial Conservative leader John Rustad.

That leaves Brienen either to run as an independent, something favoured by other B.C. United candidates, or shelve the idea of provincial office altogether.

"I haven't given it a lot of thought since the party shut down. I guess one option is to run as an independent but I really haven't made a decision at this point," he said Sept 10.

Brienen did add that a decision time is approaching, not only to meet the Sept. 28 Elections BC deadline for candidates to be named but also to raise money.

"I just know it's getting late," he said. "It takes some money to win an election and I haven't been fundraising as an independent so every day I wait, it gets a little harder."

People were donating to Brienen before Falcon's surprise move. That money went to the BC United party account as Brienen did not set up a campaign account for himself.

The BC United party has frozen its accounts so that no one as access to them.

"That's a little concerning. I'm sure that Elections BC is looking at a lot of the changes," Brienen said.

 

 

 

 

 

 



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