Findlay won with 51 per cent of the vote, just ahead of Elliott, who finished with 49 per cent. Three other candidates, starting with sitting MLA Peter Milobar, then entrepreneur Yuri Fulmer, and finally former B.C. Liberal cabinet minister Iain Black, were all eliminated in the three earlier rounds as the last-place finisher was cut from contention.
Findlay promised to protect private property rights, improve public safety and prioritize parents and families.
Findlay currently lacks a seat in the legislature, but her husband, Brent Chapman, is the MLA for Surrey South.
New Democrats reacted to Findlay’s leadership win with a news release claiming the pro-Trump wing of the B.C. Conservatives have seized control of the party.
“She is the most extreme and divisive leader of a major political party in B.C. history, and British Columbians won’t stand for it,” B.C.’s Minister of Labour Jennifer Whiteside said in the statement.