Surrey-Cloverdale

Surrey-Cloverdale centres on the Cloverdale town centre and its iconic fairgrounds, home to the annual Cloverdale Rodeo, before extending northward into the rapidly expanding Clayton Heights neighbourhoods where row upon row of townhouses and single-family homes have filled former agricultural land. The riding's southern reaches retain a semi-rural character, with properties bordering the Agricultural Land Reserve, while Clayton Heights ranks among the fastest-growing communities in Metro Vancouver.

The NDP's Mike Starchuk had held the riding since 2020, flipping it from the BC Liberals for the first time in its history. The 2024 race drew unusual attention because of the candidacy of Elenore Sturko, who had entered the legislature as a BC Liberal MLA for the neighbouring riding of Surrey South in a 2022 by-election, crossed the floor to the Conservatives in June 2024, and then ran in Surrey-Cloverdale after the redistribution and party realignment reshuffled candidacies across Surrey.

Candidates

Elenore Sturko (Conservative Party) — Sturko had served as a sergeant in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police before entering politics. She joined the force in 2009, served in Langley and Yellowknife, participated in the RCMP Musical Ride during Canada's 150th anniversary tour, and became a media relations officer for the Surrey RCMP detachment. She won the Surrey South by-election in September 2022 as a BC Liberal candidate and crossed to the Conservatives in June 2024.

Mike Starchuk (BC NDP) — Starchuk was the incumbent MLA and a longtime Surrey resident of more than fifty years. A career firefighter, he spent thirty-two years with the Surrey Fire Service before retiring as chief fire prevention officer in 2014. He was elected to Surrey City Council that same year under the Surrey First banner, chairing committees on environmental sustainability, agriculture, and seniors.

Pat McCutcheon (BC Green Party) and Judy Meilleur (Freedom Party of BC) also contested the riding.

Local Issues

School overcrowding in Clayton Heights remained a crisis-level concern for families in Surrey-Cloverdale. The rapid pace of residential construction had brought thousands of young families to the neighbourhood, but classroom construction had not kept pace. Portable classrooms remained a visible feature of the landscape at several elementary and secondary schools. The NDP government had committed more than two hundred million dollars to school construction and expansion across Surrey since 2017, including new schools on Maddaugh Road and Regent Road in Clayton Heights, but the Surrey School District's enrolment — the highest in British Columbia — meant that demand continued to outstrip supply. The Conservatives argued for streamlined capital approval processes to accelerate construction.

The policing transition affected Cloverdale directly. The riding fell within District 4 of Surrey's policing geography, and the transition from RCMP to the Surrey Police Service was proceeding in phases. Cloverdale residents had longstanding relationships with local RCMP detachment officers, and many expressed concern about the disruption of community policing during a changeover that was expected to extend into 2026 or 2027. Property crime, vehicle theft, and drug-related activity near the Cloverdale town centre were persistent public safety frustrations.

The SkyTrain extension along Fraser Highway was under construction to the north of the riding, bringing the promise of future rapid transit access but also immediate traffic disruption. Cloverdale's commercial strip along 176th Street depended on vehicle access, and business owners voiced concern about the impact of construction detours on foot traffic and customer access. Meanwhile, the riding's semi-rural southern precincts raised concerns about development pressure on properties near the Agricultural Land Reserve boundary, where the tension between Cloverdale's agricultural heritage and the relentless pace of suburban expansion continued to shape local politics.