British Columbia’s Premier John Horgan announced on Tuesday afternoon, June 28 that he would be stepping down from his position and will not be seeking re-election in his riding of Langford-Juan de Fuca.
Horgan, 62, has been fighting cancer since the discovery of a lump on his throat in October of 2021. In his announcement on Tuesday, he shared that while he was now cancer free, he may no longer have the energy to lead the provincial NDP past the next election.
“As we reach the midpoint of our second term, it’s clear the tasks ahead of our province are enormous and will require a leader focused on the next two years and beyond,” Horgan’s statement reads. “I am proudly cancer free. I have a lot of energy, but I must acknowledge that this may not be the case two years from now. Therefore I have decided not to run again in the next election.”
Horgan said that he plans to stay on as Premier until a new leader of the provincial NDP has been chosen.
“Being premier is never a job I expected to have, but it has been the honour of my life,” the statement goes on to read.
Horgan was first elected as the MLA from Langford-Juan de Fuca in 2005. In 2014 he was elected leader of the B.C NDP. In 2017, three years after being elected leader, he defeated incumbent Liberal premier Christy Clark to form a coalition government with the Green Party.
In 2020 his party was re-elected with a large majority of 57 seats in the legislature, the largest win the British Columbia NDP was ever able to secure in a provincial election.
During his time as premier, Horgan led the province through the COVID-19 pandemic, he battled with Alberta over delays surrounding the Trans Mountain pipeline project, and was later criticized for refusing to meet with the Wet’suwet’en Indigenous chiefs who protested that pipeline travelling through their ancestral lands in B.C.
The federal NDP released a statement thanking premier Horgan for his leadership.
“John has shown the difference an NDP government can make for people. Affordable childcare and paid sick leave; making it easier to join a Union and leading the fight for better funding for our health care – these are all evidence of Premier Horgan’s accomplishments. Canadians need more leaders like John Horgan,” reads a part of a statement from federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh.
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