Excitement 'beyond Hope' as B.C.'s next premier promises to bring rural, northern perspective to top job

Andrew Kurjata · CBC News

· Posted: Oct 27, 2026 12:12 AM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

For the first time in decades, British Columbia will have a premier from north of Metro Vancouver following a general election victory.

Though he was born in New Westminster and raised in Surrey, Lorne Doerkson moved to the B.C. Interior as an adult, working for newspapers in Salmon Arm, Prince George and 100 Mile House before settling in Williams Lake in 2001.

And he isn't shy about making his love for the region known.

"I love Cariboo-Chilcotin," he enthused in his election night victory speech, calling Williams Lake home while also giving specific mention to key northern and Interior cities, including Fort St. John and Quesnel.

WATCH | Doerkson promises to bring rural perspectives to premiership:

"For a very long time, a lot of British Columbians have felt like Victoria forgot about them, like the map maybe stopped at Hope," he said, referencing the community often referred to as the unofficial border between southern B.C. and the rest of the province.

"But tonight the whole map counts."

The last party leader from north of Vancouver to win an election was Bill Bennett, who left office in 1986.

Dan Miller served as premier and interim leader of the B.C. NDP for six months while representing the North Coast, but he never led his party in a campaign.

An incoming premier from "beyond Hope" has others expressing optimism for the future of the region, too.

"Having someone from the Cariboo step into this role is a proud moment for our city and region," Williams Lake Mayor Surinderpal Rathor wrote on Facebook.

"I look forward to ensuring the priorities of Williams Lake remain part of the provincial conversation, including health care, public safety, infrastructure and a strong local economy."

"Alex Fraser is smiling tonight," said incoming Quesnel mayor Coralee Oakes, referencing the former B.C. transportation minister, who represented the Cariboo region from 1969 until 1989 and was responsible for many infrastructure projects in the region.

Former B.C. Conservative Party leader Trevor Bolin, now preparing for his first term as mayor of Fort St. John, said he "couldn't be more proud" to see a rural premier-designate getting ready to be sworn in.

Doerkson resides in Williams Lake in B.C.'s Cariboo-Chilcotin region, known for events like the Williams Lake Stampede. (Simon Charland/CBC)

Challenges ahead

Doerkson delved further into what perspective he would bring to the job during a media scrum Sunday morning, directly addressing voters in "rural and northern British Columbia, the Interior, the Peace, the Island and the coast."

"It has been a long time since you've had a premier from where you live," he said.

"I know what it means when the mill closes, when the ER shuts at night and when there's fire on the ridge. Under this government, you will never be an afterthought to the public service."

Speaking as part of the CBC Daybreak North political panel Monday, former B.C. Liberal MLA Shirley Bond, who lives in Prince George, said Doerkson's challenge would be delivering on the message of change he's promised.

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"Keeping emergency rooms open, I don't think [anyone] is going to disagree on that," she said. "The question is, how do you get there?"

Likewise, University of Northern British Columbia political scientist Jason Morris said Doerkson would still have to pay attention to the population centres in southern B.C.

LISTEN | Former northern MLAs on B.C. electing a premier from the region:

"The role of a premier is to be a formal symbol of the province that is expected to effectively engage with and listen and represent citizens from all parts of the province," he said.

"The balance of the population in British Columbia is concentrated in the metropolis areas of Vancouver and the southern tip of Vancouver Island, and that is always where a significant amount of power and influence is going to be held."

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Doerkson has made sure to connect his message to southern B.C. as well, praising businesses in Vancouver and Surrey and stating "a mine opening in the north keeps a port busy in Delta."