Six election candidates have so far been announced for Abbotsford’s two federal ridings.
Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on Sunday (March 23) that the next federal election will take place Monday, April 28.
Nominations close on April 7, and candidates will be posted on the Elections Canada website on or after April 9.
Candidates who have so far been declared in the new riding of Abbotsford-South Langley are Sukhman Gill for the Conservatives, Dharmasena Yakandawela for the NDP and Melissa Snazell for the Green Party.
Gill, a Langley farmer, won the Conservative Party nomination on March 8 against four others after 30-year politician Mike de Jong announced earlier in the week that his application to run had been denied by the national office.
De Jong, who previously served as the Abbotsford West MLA under BC United (formerly the Liberals), has not yet announced whether he plans to enter the race in another capacity, perhaps as an independent.
Yakandawela, an immigration lawyer who was formerly a judge in Sri Lanka, ran as the NDP candidate for the Abbotsford riding in the 2021 federal election.
Snazell has lived in Aldergrove for 12 years, is a registered pharmacy technician, and is currently pursuing a degree in public policy with a focus on climate issues.
Ed Fast has served as the Abbotsford MP for more than 18 years, but announced in March 2024 that he would be retiring from federal politics as of the next election.
Meanwhile, candidates announced so far in the new riding of Mission-Matsqui-Abbotsford are incumbent Brad Vis for the Conservatives, Jules Côté for the NDP and Kevin Sinclair for the People's Party of Canada (PPC).
Vis was first elected as MP in the former Mission-Matsqui-Fraser Canyon riding in 2019 and was re-elected in 2021.
Côté, born and raised in Abbotsford, is a student at University of the Fraser Valley, a member of the National Farmers Union, and a volunteer with several organizations, including the food bank, the Starfish Pack Program and her church.
Sinclair previously ran as the PPC candidate in the Abbotsford riding in the 2021 federal election. He describes himself as an environmental advocate, and previously called for the elimination of toxic lead shotgun shell ammunition, spurred by the deaths of thousands of trumpeter swans at Judson Lake in Abbotsford.
Neither the Liberals nor the Green Party have yet announced candidates in either of the two local ridings.
Abbotsford-South Langley covers most of Langley south of 40 Avenue and includes all of Aldergrove and Brookswood.
In Abbotsford, it includes a significant portion of the downtown area and runs as far east as Sumas Way.
Mission-Matsqui-Abbotsford contains the remainder of Abbotsford/Matsqui, parts of Mission, electoral areas G and C, a portion of area F, Harrison Hot Springs and the District of Kent.
