Steveston—Richmond East

Steveston—Richmond East takes in the eastern half of the City of Richmond and the historic fishing village of Steveston, located on islands in the Fraser River delta roughly thirty minutes south of downtown Vancouver. Richmond's terrain averages just one metre above sea level, making the community acutely vulnerable to flooding and sea-level rise.

Candidates

Kenny Chiu (Conservative) — A software engineer, Chiu first came to Canada from Hong Kong in 1982 and settled in Richmond. He was elected to the Richmond School Board as a trustee in 2011. He had run as the Conservative candidate in this riding in 2015, finishing second to the Liberal incumbent.

Joe Peschisolido (Liberal) — The incumbent MP, first elected in 2015, Peschisolido was a lawyer who held a political science degree from the University of Toronto and a law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School. He had previously served as MP for Richmond from 2000 to 2004, initially elected under the Canadian Alliance banner before crossing the floor to the Liberals in 2002.

Jaeden Dela Torre (NDP) — At eighteen years old, Dela Torre was among the youngest candidates in the entire 2019 federal election. Born and raised in Richmond, he was motivated to run by environmental concerns.

Nicole Iaci (Green Party) — A lawyer born and raised in Richmond, Iaci was a member of the Kwantlen First Nation. She campaigned on affordability issues, including guaranteed livable income, pharmacare, and the elimination of post-secondary tuition.

Ping Chan ran as an Independent.

About the Riding

The riding's identity is shaped by its heritage waterfront and its extraordinary cultural diversity. Steveston village, founded in the 1880s at the mouth of the Fraser River's south arm, was once the centre of British Columbia's salmon canning industry. The Gulf of Georgia Cannery, a National Historic Site, and the adjacent boardwalk preserve this industrial heritage, while Steveston Harbour remains home to one of Canada's largest commercial fishing fleets. Japanese Canadian residents played a foundational role in Steveston's early development, though the community was devastated in 1942 when thousands of residents were forcibly removed and sent to internment camps.

Richmond's population is among the most diverse in Canada, with a significant proportion of residents having immigrated from China, Hong Kong, and other parts of East and Southeast Asia. The city's economy is anchored by Vancouver International Airport on neighbouring Sea Island, along with retail, technology, and agriculture on fertile delta farmland protected by the Agricultural Land Reserve.

Flood risk and sea-level rise were tangible local concerns given Richmond's low-lying geography, and the city invested in dike upgrades and mitigation infrastructure. Housing affordability was acute, driven by proximity to Vancouver and the airport. The proposed replacement of the aging George Massey Tunnel connecting Richmond to Delta remained a contentious transportation issue heading into the 2019 campaign.