VICTORIA — Former Conservative member of the British Columbia legislature Amelia Boultbee, who left the caucus to sit as an Independent, is now a member of the governing New Democrats.

Boultbee, who won her seat as a B.C. Conservative by narrowly edging out an NDP opponent by a few hundred votes, says her former party has changed and its big tent is getting smaller by the day.

She says the Conservatives don’t offer solutions and their approach would set the province back and leave people more divided.

Boultbee is a former Penticton city councillor who left the Conservative caucus in October over differences with then-leader John Rustad, calling out what she considered his “failed leadership.”

B.C. Premier David Eby has praised Boultbee’s experience and says she will be part of an “anchor” to represent the needs of the Okanagan.

With Boultbee’s addition, the New Democrats now have 48 members in the provincial legislature and the B.C. Conservatives have 38, with two Greens and five Independents.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 3, 2026

The Canadian Press