Two late entries complete the field in a British Columbia byelection that doubles as the Conservative leader's bid for a legislature seat.
The Abbotsford-Mission byelection now has a full slate of five candidates after the BC Green Party and the BC Libertarian Party confirmed their entries ahead of the Sept. 26 provincial vote in British Columbia. Green candidate Stephen Fowler, a secondary school teacher in Abbotsford, and Libertarian candidate Jeff Monds were announced over the first weekend of September, completing a ballot that already included the leader of the Conservative Party of B.C.
The contest carries weight beyond the riding’s borders. Conservative leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay is seeking the seat as her route into the legislature, which turns an ordinary single-riding byelection into a test of her standing with voters in one of the party’s strongholds in the Fraser Valley.
Who Is on the Abbotsford-Mission Byelection Ballot
With nominations now public, five names are in the field, spanning the province’s two largest parties, two smaller parties and a newer centrist entrant.
- Kerry-Lynne Findlay: leader of the Conservative Party of B.C., running to enter the legislature.
- Pam Alexis: BC NDP candidate and a former MLA.
- Stephen Fowler: BC Green Party candidate and a teacher at Rick Hansen Secondary in Abbotsford.
- Jeff Monds: BC Libertarian Party candidate.
- Lakhwinder Jhaj: candidate for CentreBC.
No further biographical details were released for Monds or Jhaj, and the parties did not publish additional background on Alexis beyond her previous service as an MLA.
Why Reann Gasper’s Resignation Opened the Seat
The vacancy was created deliberately. Conservative MLA Reann Gasper, who held Abbotsford-Mission, resigned in August to clear a path for Findlay, who won the party’s leadership in May and had no seat in the legislature.
That sequence is a familiar manoeuvre in Canadian politics: a party elects a leader from outside the chamber, and a sitting member in a safe riding steps aside so the leader can seek election in a byelection rather than wait for a general election. It also raises the stakes, because the leader is effectively campaigning on ground the party expects to hold.
Stephen Fowler’s Case Against Inequality and Climate Inaction
In a news release issued Saturday, Sept. 5, Fowler said he decided to run because of rising inequality and what he described as government failure to confront a climate emergency already damaging communities across British Columbia. He argued that political and economic systems built to protect the wealth of a small group, at the expense of everyone else’s safety and wellbeing, sit at the root of both issues.
“Government’s job is to actually make people’s lives better, to create opportunity and tackle problems together that we cannot face alone,” Fowler said in the release. “But the two main parties lack the courage to champion proven solutions. That’s what I’m prepared to do.”
He also pressed the case for candour about what he called “very big but not impossible problems,” saying voters in Abbotsford-Mission deserve a representative willing to tell it like it is and to push the government to prioritize local needs and better support families and communities in the region.
Fowler taught after an earlier stretch of four years working at a mill in Maple Ridge. Climate has become a recurring line of attack for Green candidates in B.C., where seasonal weather swings and wildfire risk shape public debate; forecasters have also been watching the pattern shift signalled in the El Niño outlook pointing to a mild autumn and a late Canadian winter.
The BC Greens Platform Fowler Is Campaigning On
Fowler is running on the party’s existing platform rather than a riding-specific program. The commitments he highlighted include:
- Housing: building affordable social housing as the central response to the housing crisis.
- Transit: providing fast and free public transit.
- Health care: investing in Community Health Centres in every neighbourhood to deliver accessible, preventative care and reduce pressure on emergency rooms.
BC Greens leader Emily Lowan, who also does not hold a seat in the legislature, called Fowler a passionate and caring community advocate. “The people of Abbotsford-Mission deserve a politics that doesn’t just offer a vision of what it’s against, but what it can do to make life better — that’s why Stephen is the right candidate for this moment,” she said.
Lowan framed the choice for voters as one between “culture wars that distract from real problems” and what she described as half truths and false solutions that generate headlines while keeping the province on a dangerous path, urging residents to vote for something better with the Greens.
Jeff Monds and the Libertarian Push on Findlay’s Right Flank
The BC Libertarian Party published a campaign poster for Monds on Monday, Sept. 7, setting out priorities for what it called a “freer, stronger British Columbia” built on less tax, less government and more freedom.
Party leader Alex Joehl used a social media video to position Monds explicitly as a check on the Conservative leader. “The leader of the BC Conservatives, Kerry-Lynne Findlay, is running on Sept. 26 to become the next MLA in Abbotsford-Mission. But don’t let her off the hook. If you want less tax and less government, please vote for our candidate, Jeff Monds,” Joehl said.
That pitch is the clearest strategic signal of the campaign so far. Rather than contesting the riding as a broad-based alternative, the Libertarians are aiming at voters on the right who may be unconvinced that the Conservative leadership goes far enough on taxes and the size of government.
Advance Voting Runs Sept. 18 to 23 Before the Sept. 26 Vote
Voters in the riding have two windows to cast a ballot. Advance voting is scheduled for Sept. 18 to 23, followed by general voting day on Sept. 26.
| Milestone | Date |
|---|---|
| Green and Libertarian candidates announced | Sept. 5 and Sept. 7, 2026 |
| Advance voting period | Sept. 18 to 23, 2026 |
| Election day | Sept. 26, 2026 |
| Number of candidates on the ballot | Five |
Specific polling locations, hours and voter registration details were not included in the candidate announcements. Residents should confirm those particulars through official provincial election information before voting.
What a Five-Way Race Means for the Result
General context on byelections helps explain what is and is not at stake. A byelection fills a single vacant seat and does not by itself change which party governs a province. Turnout is typically lower than in a general election, and smaller parties often invest in these races precisely because a concentrated effort in one riding can produce a stronger vote share than they would achieve province-wide.
Two of the five campaigns are also being run partly as leadership exercises. Findlay is seeking a seat to lead her caucus from inside the chamber, while Lowan is using the race to raise her own party’s profile from outside it. For the NDP, running a former MLA in Alexis gives the governing party a recognizable local name against an opposition leader.
The multi-party field introduces a familiar arithmetic question as well. Where four or five candidates split the vote, a modest shift on either the right or the centre-left can matter more than the overall popularity of any single party, which is why the Libertarian appeal to tax-focused voters and the Green appeal to climate-focused voters are both worth watching on election night.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the Abbotsford-Mission byelection?
Election day is Sept. 26, 2026, with advance voting available from Sept. 18 to 23.
Why is a byelection being held in the riding?
Conservative MLA Reann Gasper resigned in August 2026, creating a vacancy that allows party leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay to seek a seat in the legislature.
How many candidates are running?
Five: Kerry-Lynne Findlay (Conservative Party of B.C.), Pam Alexis (BC NDP), Stephen Fowler (BC Greens), Jeff Monds (BC Libertarian Party) and Lakhwinder Jhaj (CentreBC).
Does the result change the provincial government?
No. A byelection fills one vacant seat; it does not on its own determine which party governs British Columbia.
