Saanich—Gulf Islands

Saanich—Gulf Islands encompasses the northern half of the Saanich Peninsula on Vancouver Island and the Southern Gulf Islands scattered across the Strait of Georgia. The riding includes the municipalities of Central Saanich, North Saanich, and Sidney on the peninsula, along with Salt Spring, Galiano, Mayne, Pender, and Saturna islands. The Swartz Bay ferry terminal in North Saanich provides the primary link between Vancouver Island and the mainland. The riding had one of the oldest median ages of any federal constituency in Canada.

Candidates

Elizabeth May (Green Party) — The leader of the Green Party of Canada, May first won Saanich—Gulf Islands in 2011, becoming the first Green MP elected to the House of Commons. An environmental lawyer who earned her law degree from Dalhousie University in 1983, she served as senior policy advisor to federal Environment Minister Thomas McMillan in the Mulroney government, where she participated in negotiations on the Montreal Protocol. She later led the Sierra Club of Canada as executive director from 1989 to 2006 and was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2005.

David Busch (Conservative) — A Saanich-based lawyer who operated his own law firm, Busch held a nursing background before turning to law. He held two Bachelor of Science degrees — in biochemistry and nursing — and a Juris Doctor, and had previously worked as a critical care nurse. He taught law at the University of Victoria.

Ryan Windsor (Liberal) — The mayor of Central Saanich, Windsor was selected by the Liberal Party to contest the riding.

Sabina Singh (NDP) — A political science instructor who had taught at institutions across British Columbia for fifteen years, including the University of Victoria and Camosun College.

Ron Broda also ran for the People's Party of Canada.

About the Riding

Saanich—Gulf Islands is characterized by an older, well-educated, and environmentally conscious electorate, a demographic profile that has made it uniquely receptive to the Green Party. The Southern Gulf Islands face distinct challenges: BC Ferries service is a lifeline for island residents, and fares, scheduling, and vessel reliability were persistent sources of frustration. Salt Spring Island, the largest of the Gulf Islands with approximately eleven thousand residents, contended with limited freshwater supplies, a housing shortage worsened by vacation rental conversions, and the high cost of ferry-dependent goods. On the peninsula, the agricultural land of Central Saanich and North Saanich supports farms, vineyards, and the Saanich Fair — the oldest continuously running agricultural fair in western Canada. Sidney, a seaside town of about twelve thousand, serves as a commercial hub and the gateway to the Washington State ferry route to Anacortes. Environmental issues dominated the 2019 campaign, including oil tanker traffic through the Gulf Islands, the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, and protection of the endangered southern resident killer whale population in the Salish Sea.