North Island

North Island is a sprawling riding covering the northern half of Vancouver Island, from Campbell River in the south to Port Hardy, Port McNeill, and Alert Bay in the north, along with numerous smaller coastal and island communities. NDP incumbent Claire Trevena had held the seat since 2005 and was seeking a fourth consecutive term. In 2013, Trevena won with a comfortable margin, and the riding had been firmly in NDP hands for over a decade. The north island's economy is rooted in forestry, fishing, aquaculture, and tourism, with Campbell River—the largest community—serving as the area's commercial centre.

Candidates

Claire Trevena (BC NDP) — Trevena was first elected in 2005 and had built a reputation as a tenacious constituency representative. Among the highlights of her legislative career was her advocacy for the construction of a new hospital in Campbell River, which was part of the North Island Hospitals Project. She had spent her entire legislative career in opposition and was hoping the 2017 election would bring the NDP to government.

Dallas William Smith (BC Liberal Party) — Smith was the president of the Nanwakolas Council and a member of the Tlowitsis Nation, which is part of the Kwakwaka'wakw. He had been a key figure in the negotiations leading to the Great Bear Rainforest agreement, one of the largest conservation achievements in Canadian history.

Sue Moen (BC Green Party) — Moen was a non-profit consultant and community worker with Campbell River's street-engaged populations. She had previously served as executive director of A Loving Spoonful in Vancouver and had seven years' experience as a care-team volunteer in the AIDS community.

John M. Twigg ran for the BC First party. Twigg had been active in B.C. politics and media for over four decades, including serving as press secretary to NDP Premier Dave Barrett from 1972 to 1975.

Local Issues

Health care infrastructure was the most tangible local issue in the riding. The North Island Hospitals Project, a $606-million initiative to build two new hospitals on northern Vancouver Island, was nearing completion during the campaign. The new Campbell River and District General Hospital—a 95-bed, 32,300-square-metre facility—was scheduled to open in September 2017. While the new hospital was welcome news, residents in the riding's more remote northern communities continued to struggle with emergency room closures and physician shortages in Port Hardy, Port McNeill, and Alert Bay.

The aquaculture industry, particularly open-net salmon farming, was a contentious issue in a riding where wild salmon hold both economic and cultural significance. Environmental groups and First Nations communities raised concerns about the impact of fish farms on wild salmon populations, while the industry pointed to the jobs and economic activity it provided in small coastal communities. The tension between environmental protection and resource-sector employment was a recurring theme.

Forestry remained important to the riding's economy, though the industry had contracted significantly over the preceding decades. Mill closures and the shift toward raw log exports were sore points for communities that had once depended on value-added wood manufacturing. Residents in northern communities also expressed concerns about BC Ferries service, including route scheduling, fare levels, and the reliability of connections to remote coastal settlements.