Burnaby East

Burnaby East covers the eastern portions of the city, stretching from the residential neighbourhoods around Burnaby Lake and the Lougheed Highway corridor through to the border with Coquitlam and Port Moody. The riding takes in the Lougheed Town Centre, one of Burnaby's four designated urban cores, where SkyTrain's Millennium Line has catalysed a wave of high-rise residential development. The area is home to a diverse mix of immigrant families, long-established suburban neighbourhoods, and the natural greenspace surrounding Burnaby Lake Regional Park. Light industrial zones along the highway corridors provide employment in logistics, manufacturing, and trades.

The seat had been held by the NDP's Katrina Chen since 2017, but Chen announced she would not seek re-election, creating an open contest. The NDP nominated a new candidate to defend the seat in a riding where the party had built a comfortable margin over two elections but faced a newly energised Conservative challenge.

Candidates

Reah Arora (BC NDP) — Arora was raised in Burnaby's Westridge neighbourhood, where her parents owned and operated an independent pizza shop. She studied linguistics and political science before becoming a trade unionist, joining the United Steelworkers Local 2009 and eventually serving as Director of Organizing and Campaigns at the BC Federation of Labour. She had previously run unsuccessfully for Burnaby city council in 2022 as a member of the Burnaby Citizens Association.

Simon Chandler (Conservative Party) — Chandler graduated from Trinity Western University with a Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting and served two years in the army reserves as an infantry soldier. He has lived in Burnaby for thirteen years. Originally nominated as the Conservative candidate for Burnaby North, he was reassigned to Burnaby East after BC United suspended its campaign and its candidate Michael Wu joined the Conservative slate.

Tara Shushtarian (BC Green Party) — Shushtarian ran for the Greens, receiving a modest share of the vote.

Local Issues

Housing development and tenant displacement were central concerns in a riding experiencing rapid transformation around transit nodes. The Lougheed Town Centre area was undergoing intensive redevelopment, with multiple high-rise towers approved or under construction near the SkyTrain station. The NDP government's transit-oriented development legislation mandated higher densities near rapid transit, accelerating a process that was already reshaping the neighbourhood. Long-time renters in older low-rise apartments faced displacement notices as landlords sold properties to developers, and tenant advocacy groups pressed for stronger protections and more affordable replacement units.

The cost of living weighed heavily on working families in a riding with a significant concentration of immigrant households, many of whom worked in trades, retail, and the service sector. Grocery prices, ICBC premiums, and childcare costs consumed growing shares of household budgets. The NDP government's $10-a-day childcare program was expanding but had not yet reached universal availability, and waitlists remained long at many Burnaby centres. The party pointed to its reduction of ICBC premiums through the Enhanced Care model and elimination of MSP premiums as tangible savings for families.

Public safety concerns intensified during the inter-election term. Burnaby residents reported rising property crime, and incidents of random violence on transit drew heightened media attention. The opioid crisis and visible homelessness along commercial corridors — particularly near Lougheed and Kingsway — fuelled demand for both social services and enforcement. The Conservative campaign focused on reversing drug decriminalization and restoring what it described as law and order, while the NDP emphasized investments in mental health teams, supportive housing, and community safety initiatives.

Transit service and infrastructure shaped the riding's daily life. The Millennium Line's Lougheed station was a critical node for commuters heading to downtown Vancouver, SFU, or the Tri-Cities, and overcrowding during peak hours had been a persistent complaint. The province's investment in the Broadway Subway extension promised to relieve some pressure on the system, but riders in Burnaby East pressed for increased frequency and reliability on existing lines. Bus service connecting residential areas to SkyTrain stations was another point of contention, with community groups calling for expanded routes in neighbourhoods poorly served by the rapid transit network.