Local liberals look ahead after sweeping Kamloops ridings

May 10, 2017 | 6:00 PM

KAMLOOPS — British Columbians elected a Liberal government Tuesday night, one that appears to be a minority for the time being. 

There are several ridings that have the potential to swing one way or the other depending on the absentee vote. 

In Kamloops, however, the ridings were unmistakably liberal, with both Todd Stone and Peter Milobar winning their seats.

WATCH: Full report by Jill Sperling

Milobar is breathing a sigh of relief following his Kamloops-North Thompson victory.

“It’s a nice relief to know, first off it was a successful campaign, but also myself, my wife, my family has a bit of an idea of what the direction of my life will be over the next few years now,” Milobar said.

Milobar is now tasked with navigating the shift from mayor to MLA, and he’s excited for the challenge of a new system of governance. 

“Not unlike when I first became a councillor back in 2002, and needing to meet new people, and the operations, and the staff behind the scenes, and forging relationships.”

For incumbent Todd Stone, it’s back to business, but not before taking a much needed rest after the 28-day campaign.

 “It’s going to be nice over the next couple weeks to actually spend a lot of quality time with my three daughters and my wife and just be a family while we go through this transition period before a swearing in ceremony,” Stone said. 

The next few weeks will also determine whether Chrity Clark’s Liberals form a minority or majority government as absentee votes are counted. 

“There were a handful of seats last night that were won by very, very thin margins, including Courtenay-Comox on Vancouver Island,” Stone said. “It was a nine vote difference separating the NDP and the Liberals.”

The final vote count has the potential to swing a seat the Liberal’s way, securing a majority. 

Whether it’s a majority or a minority government, the tight election race has sent the Liberals a clear message. 

“It was a close election,” Stone said. “British Columbians generally want to stay the course, but they also want us to hear loud and clear that there are some big issues that they want us to focus our attention on.”

Those are issues that may require the political parties to finally start working together to solve. 

RIDING RESULTS: Kamloops-South Thompson

RIDING RESULTS: Kamloops-North Thompson