Warbus wins Chilliwack-Cultus Lake riding with over 60% of the vote

CHILLIWACK-CULTUS LAKE – Global BC now projects that incumbent Á’a:líya Warbus of the B.C. Conservatives has won the Chilliwack-Cultus Lake riding.

With 71 out of 86 polls reporting at 9:42 p.m., Warbus was ahead with11,410 votes (60.3 per cent) to Paddon’s 7,500 votes (39.7 per cent).

Warbus, the incumbent, is looking to secure another four-year term after defeating Kelli Paddon two years ago by nine percentage points.

Earlier this week, Paddon said a re-elected NDP government would be able to deliver an MRI machine to Chilliwack General Hospital. She said she had continued building relationships and working alongside community partners to get things done, even though she hadn’t been an MLA for two years.

Paddon said that type of work resulted in a solid commitment to fully fund an MRI machine in Chilliwack.

“And this week, that work helped secure an $8 million commitment for Chilliwack’s MRI in the BC NDP’s fully costed plan,” Paddon said. “This is bigger than any one candidate. It’s about the patients, families, health care workers, incredible donors, and community members who have been advocating for this investment for years. I’m proud to stand alongside them, and I’m focused on what comes next. Chilliwack needs stable, experienced representation that brings people together and delivers results. There’s more work to do, and I’m ready to get back to it.”

Warbus countered Paddon by saying Chilliwack has done its part to raise millions for a long-awaited MRI machine at Chilliwack General Hospital, but said the NDP dropped the ball and only stepped up when an election approached.

“Health care is on the mind of every British Columbian, and too many people are waiting too long for the scans and treatment they need,” Warbus wrote in a statement posted Thursday, Oct. 22. “Under David Eby’s NDP, being told you need critical tests, only to wait months and travel far from home while you’re unwell, has become routine. Chilliwack has done its part. The community rolled up its sleeves, raised the money and cut through the red tape to bring an MRI home. The only missing piece has been the NDP government, which only shows interest when there are election promises to be made. An MRI in Chilliwack would cut wait times and long commutes across the Fraser Valley and save lives. Our community raised the money and did the work, and the NDP still left us waiting.”

Warbus also called out the NDP’s cancellation of the Bradley Centre expansion, calling it a shovel-ready project the community desperately needs.