Fifteen candidates of Punjabi origin have won seats in British Columbia’s provincial election, 12 of them Conservatives and three NDP, according to preliminary tallies by Punjabi community outlets Babushahi and Punjab News Express.

The wins came on the back of a Conservative sweep of Surrey, which has one of the largest Punjabi communities outside India. “A blue wave has officially engulfed Surrey and White Rock,” the Surrey Now-Leader reported, noting that all 10 of Surrey’s ridings went Conservative.

Mandeep Dhaliwal retained Surrey North, a seat he won in 2024 by defeating NDP minister Rachna Singh. Harj Dhaliwal won Surrey-Newton, defeating NDP incumbent Jessie Sunner. According to the Surrey Now-Leader, his victory ended “many years of NDP control of the riding”.

Garry Purewal won Surrey-Fleetwood, unseating NDP incumbent Jagrup Brar, who was born in Bathinda district and had held the seat since 2004. Garry Thind won Surrey-Guildford defeating NDP incumbent Garry Begg, a week after also winning a school trustee seat in Surrey’s civic election. Zeeshan Wahla took Surrey City Centre from the NDP’s Amna Shah in a close contest, and Jessy Sahota won Surrey-Serpentine River.

Babushahi and Punjab News Express also list Harman Bhangu, Jody Toor, Steve Kooner, Monica Mohan, Pavneet Singh and Deep Sandhu among the Conservative winners. They name Raj Chouhan, Niki Sharma and Rohini Arora as the three NDP winners. Canadian mainstream outlets have not yet confirmed these nine names.

This was the provincial general election for the 93-seat BC Legislative Assembly, held on October 24. NDP Premier David Eby called it more than two years early. The Globe and Mail reported that with over 99 per cent of polls counted, the Conservatives had won 64 seats, the NDP 27 and the Greens two.

According to CBC News, it is the Conservatives’ first majority government since 1928, and Premier-designate Lorne Doerkson said, “BC is definitely blue.” Eby resigned as NDP leader, and CTV News reported him saying, “I accept full responsibility.”

Final counts are expected in early November, and the seat tally and the Punjabi-origin figure could change.

List of 15 Punjabi-origin winners

Conservative Party of British Columbia — 12

1. Mandeep Singh Dhaliwal — Surrey North

2. Dr Harjit Taliwal — Surrey-Newton

3. Jessy Sahota — Delta

4. Garry Thind — Surrey-Guildford

5. Zeeshan Wahla — Surrey City Centre

6. Harman Bhangu — Langley-Abbotsford

7. Jody Toor — Langley-Willowbrook

8. Steve Kooner — Richmond-Queensborough

9. Garry Purewal — Surrey-Fleetwood

10. Monica Mohan — Delta North

11. Pavneet Singh — Kelowna-Lake Country-Coldstream

12. Deep Sandhu — Vancouver-Fraserview

New Democratic Party (NDP) — 3

13. Raj Chouhan — Burnaby-New Westminster

14. Niki Sharma — Vancouver-Hastings

15. Rohini “Reah” Arora — Burnaby East