Image Credit: CFJC Today

By Victor Kaisar

Canada Votes 2025

Mel Arnold elected Kamloops-Shuswap-Central Rockies MP

Apr 28, 2025 | 9:21 PM

KAMLOOPS — (UPDATE April 29): Mel Arnold has been elected as the first-ever Member of Parliament in the riding of Kamloops-Shuswap-Central Rockies.

With 99 per cent of the polls reporting, Arnold had 35,556 votes (52.2 per cent) while Liberal candidate Ken Robertson was in second place with 26,529 votes (39 per cent).

While Arnold will be going into his fourth-term in office, it will be his first time representing the City of Kamloops.

“A lot more nail biting for me because I wasn’t sure of what was to come and what to expect,” Arnold, a Salmon Arm resident, said.

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“Happy to represent part of my former riding that used to be North Okanagan-Shuswap, here in the Shuswap. Kamloops is now a big chunk of it now as well as Revelstoke and Golden right through to to the Alberta border.”

“I want to thank the voters for showing their support again this time, and thank all the volunteers who made it possible as well.”

Robertson told CFJC Today he was “satisfied” with the results.

“I actually think its a miracle thinking three months ago when we actually had a real difference [in the polls],” he said.

“When I started hearing this rhetoric about Donald Trump using his tariff economic war against us, it made me very angry. And I’m usually not that type of person, but I knew we had to make a stand and the only way to make a stand is by stepping up.”

The NDP’s Phaedra Idzan was a distant third with 3,730 votes (5.5 per cent).

Green candidate Owen Madden and Michael Henry of the People’s Party of Canada were fourth and fifth with 1,639 (2.4 per cent) and 602 (0.9 per cent) votes respectively.

– With files from Dylana Kneeshaw and Anthony Corea