Cariboo—Prince George

The vast interior of British Columbia unfolds across Cariboo—Prince George, a riding that reaches from the ranching and forestry communities around Williams Lake and Quesnel northward to Prince George, the province's largest northern city with roughly 74,000 residents. Vanderhoof and the Nechako Valley anchor the western portion of the riding, while the Cariboo plateau's rolling grasslands and boreal forests fill the territory in between.

Candidates

Todd Doherty (Conservative) — A Prince George aviation executive with more than two decades in the industry, Doherty spent years with the Prince George Airport Authority before holding senior roles with Edmonton International Airport and the 2015 Canada Winter Games. First elected in 2015, he championed Bill C-211, which created a federal framework on post-traumatic stress disorder and received royal assent in June 2018.

Tracy Calogheros (Liberal) — The CEO of Exploration Place, Prince George's museum and science centre, Calogheros had led the institution for more than fifteen years, during which she oversaw a facility expansion and eliminated its operating deficit. A longtime resident of northern British Columbia, she held leadership positions with the British Columbia Museums Association and the Northern British Columbia Tourism Association. She had also contested the riding in 2015.

Heather Sapergia (NDP) — A recently retired health science professional based in Prince George, Sapergia had worked as a medical laboratory technologist at Northern Health and as an instructor at the College of New Caledonia. Her campaign emphasized universal pharmacare, dental and vision care, and addressing the opioid crisis in northern communities.

Mackenzie Kerr (Green Party) — A 22-year-old forestry student at the University of Northern British Columbia who grew up on a farm near Prince George, Kerr ran on a platform focused on the climate crisis, housing affordability, and job security for younger Canadians.

Jing Lan Yang (People's Party) and Michael Orr (Independent) also sought election.

About the Riding

Forestry and wood products manufacturing form the economic foundation of Cariboo—Prince George, with major sawmills and pulp mills operating in and around Prince George, Quesnel, and Williams Lake. The region is British Columbia's top lumber-producing area, and tens of thousands of jobs depend directly or indirectly on the forest sector. Cattle ranching has a deep history across the Cariboo plateau, where some of the province's largest ranches have operated for more than a century.

Prince George sits at the junction of Highways 97 and 16, making it a transportation crossroads for northern British Columbia. The city is also home to the University of Northern British Columbia, which opened in 1994 and serves as a centre for research in northern health, environmental science, and Indigenous studies. The Prince George Airport is the primary air hub for the northern interior.

The mountain pine beetle epidemic devastated millions of hectares of lodgepole pine beginning in the late 1990s, reducing timber supply and forcing mill closures in smaller communities. Wildfires became an annual crisis, with the 2017 and 2018 fire seasons forcing mass evacuations from Williams Lake, Quesnel, and surrounding areas. Wildfire preparedness, forestry policy, resource development, and healthcare access in remote northern communities were prominent federal concerns heading into the 2019 campaign.