Province sending at least four new MPs to Parliament Hill

While thousands of mail-in ballots have yet to be counted the final results of the 2021 federal election won't be known for a few days still, but at least four new MPs have been declared in British Columbia.

Some, like longtime Liberal John Aldag, won by recapturing their riding. Others, such as Conservative Frank Caputo, replaced a retiring party incumbent.

Although the majority of these candidates are not new to politics, they're fresh on the scene for their newly elected party.

■ John Aldag, Cloverdale-Langley City

Aldag has secured Cloverdale-Langley City by a voting margin of 2.3 per cent or 1,150 votes. However, the position isn't entirely new to the Liberal. Prior to 2019 when the riding turned blue for Conservative Tamara Jansen, he served a term as MP.

Aldag's platform promised to advance the SkyTrain into Langley City, establish diversity, inclusion and agricultural advisory councils and work to secure future investments in zero-emission technologies and sustainable jobs.

■ Frank Caputo, Kamloops-Thompson–Cariboo

The Conservatives have retained Kamloops-Thompson-Cariboo, but with a new candidate, one who commanded the race with an 8,979-vote lead.

First-time campaigner Caputo, a former Crown prosecutor and law school teacher at Thompson Rivers University, will succeed four-term Conservative MP Cathy McLeod, who decided against seeking re-election this term.

Caputo has committed to combating street crime, issues of government transparency and high taxes.

■ Bonita Zarillo, Port Moody–Coquitlam The New Democrat ousted former Conservative MP Nelly Shin by 2,096 votes in Port Moody-Coquitlam. The threeterm city councillor lost to Shin in the 2019 election.

Coming out on top this term, Zarillo's platform centred on issues faced by working families, including small business support and housing affordability. Zarillo currently chairs two Coquitlam committees that promote multiculturalism and accessibility for residents with disabilities.

■ Parm Bains, Steveston– Richmond The Liberal has toppled one-term Conservative MP Kenny Chiu for Steveston-Richmond with 42.8 per cent of votes, compared to 33.2 for the incumbent.

Bains' platform promised help for middle-class families seeking new, affordable housing. A former Kwantlen business instructor, Bains continues to volunteer as vice-chair for the Richmond Community Coalition and other initiatives that promote civic engagement. In 2005, he received a B.C. Community Service Award.

There are three tight races left in B.C. that will be determined by mail ballots and potential recounts. Two of them will no doubt result in a flip of party lines, one of them is yet to be determined.

In the battleground riding of Vancouver-Granville, only 230 votes separate Liberal candidate Taleeb Noormohamed and the NDP's Anjali Appadurai. This riding was formerly held by Liberal-turned-Independent Jody Wilson-Raybould, who had decided not to run for re-election.

In Nanaimo-Ladysmith, incumbent Green Paul Manly has lost, leaving the NDP's Lisa Marie Barron and Conservative Tamara Kronis to battle it out. At last count, Barron was 989 votes ahead of Kronis.

And in Richmond Centre, Liberal Wilson Miao was 691 votes ahead of Conservative Alice Wong, who has represented the riding since 2008.