Recall petition to be issued for Dan Davies

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — Elections BC has announced a recall petition will be issued for North Peace MLA Dan Davies. 

Elections BC announced the petition in a release on January 27th. 

The proponent of the recall petition is Joseph Wayne Bell, a Cecil Lake man who is part of a northeastern B.C. separatist group that discussed having Davies removed as MLA at a meeting in early January. 

In his application for a recall petition, Bell alleged that Davies had “failed to notify constituents of important and relevant information in a timely manner.” 

Bell further stated specific matters of concern included the Infants Act, Bill 36, UNDRIP, school curriculum, and the reduction of healthcare and service workers. 

Davies spoke with Energeticcity.ca immediately following the Elections BC announcement and said as an elected official, this was a positive.

“This is democracy in action,” Davies said. “We brought the recall legislation in to allow people to have their opinion, and that’s fine.” 

Davies continued, saying there is an issue with misinformation, especially around Bill 36. 

On the topic of the allegation that Davies had failed to meet with people or give appropriate information out, Davies said he had “done as much as he can.” 

“I’ve always sent out columns and my op-eds to Energeticcity, to the other print media, to other media. I post them on my social media,” Davies said. 

“Any big issues that are affecting the province, I talk about, and I put out there.” 

In the event of a successful recall, the recalled MLA would be allowed to run again. When asked if he would run again in the event he was recalled, Davies said as of now, running again would be his plan.

“We’re busy helping people. You know, getting the thanks, getting the little cards of thank you, and hearing from people about the work that we do as an office helping people,” Davies said. 

“Not everybody feels that way, and that’s fine. I know I’m not gonna please everybody.”

The Elections BC release outlined the petition will be officially issued on February 3rd, after which registered canvassers may begin collecting signatures. The petition must be returned to Elections BC by April 4th, 2023. 

In the history of Elections BC, 28 recall petitions have been attempted. Of those 28, one in Vancouver-Point Grey is still ongoing, and no others have succeeded. 

For more information on the recall process, visit Elections BC’s website. The full application for the recall petition can be read below: