Recall Targets

The FightHST campaign has released an initial list of who they will be going after in recall

• Donna Barnett / Cariboo Chilcotin - Charlie Wyse (250) 392- 7215 / Eric Freeston (250) 303-1975
• Ida Chong / Oak Bay Gordon Head – Colin Nielsen (250) 812-6593
• Terry Lake / Kamloops North Thompson – Chad Moats (250) 376-6186
• John Slater / Boundary Similkameen – Donald Rudzcki (250) 689-0051 James Demetrick 498-3879
• Marc Dalton / Maple Ridge Mission – Corisa Nicole Bell (604) 466-9477
• Colin Hansen / Vancouver Quilchena – Colleen Garbe (604) 604-263-1047
• Bill Bennett / Kootenay East – Doug Cosier (250) 427-4005
• John Les / Chilliwack – Benjamin Besler (604) 991-8094
• Bill Barisoff / Penticton – Ron Barillaro (250) 493-8850
• Steve Thompson / Kelowna – Mission – Justin Neufeld (250) 808-7150
• John Rustad / Nechako Lakes – Mike Summers (250) 567-3395
• Ron Cantelon / Parksville Qualicum – Terry Hand (250) 756-9821
• Eric Foster / Vernon Monashee – Roderick Baziw (250) 549-1512
• Don McRae / Comox Valley – Kathryn Askew (250) 338-9843
• Norm Letnick / Kelowna-Lake Country – Al Romanchuk (778) 478-1863
• Jane Thornthwaite / North Vancouver – Seymour – Eddie Petrossian (604) 618-4100
• Joan McIntyre / West Vancouver Sea to Sky – Kelly Marie Carson (778) 888-9649
• Ben Stewart / Kelowna Westside – Chris Bullard (778) 754-1057

I look through the list and see a number of people that ran in the 2009 provincial election
Charlie Wyse - NDP MLA defeated by Donna Barnett
Benjamnin Besler - Conservative candidate
Mike Summers - Refederation candidate and party leader
Eddie Petrossian - Conservative candidate

I also looked through the list of people and see that 6 I can identify as left, 8 I can identify as right, 4 I can not connect politically and 2 more that seem to be right wing.   The campaign seems to have tapped into the same vein of populism that the Reform managed to hit in 1993.

So are these ridings good choices?   Here is a list of how well the Anti-HST campaign did in each as a percentage of the total voters:

• Cariboo Chicotin - 31.5%
• Boundary Similkameen - 30.3%
• Kootenay East - 26.4%
• Parksville Qualicum - 23.0%
• Penticton - 22.6%
• Vernon Monashee - 22.6%
• Comox Valley - 21.3%
• Westside Kelowna - 21.3%
• Kelowna Lake Country - 20.4%
• Kamloops North Thompson - 20.3%
• Kelowna Mission - 20.1%
• Maple Ridge Mission - 19.6%
• Chilliwack - 19.5%
• Oak Bay Gordon Head - 19.1%
• Nechacko Lakes - 19.1%
• North Vancouver Seymour  - 15.5%
• Vancouver Quilchena - 14.8%
• West Vancover Sea to Sky - 14.0%

The recall campaigns have to get 40% of the voters to sign the petition to recall an MLA.   Many of the target ridings the Anti-HST petition did not even reach half of the threshold for recall.  Some the target seats make no sense because there is no indication that there is any chance for a successful recall.

Recall is going to be very hard and the data from the initiative campaign says to me that they will be lucky to recall two MLAs, certainly not I do not see an real chance for enough to be recalled to have the government fall.