Columbia River–Revelstoke MLA Norm Macdonald won’t run in 2017 B.C. general election

Three-term Columbia River-Revelstoke MLA Norm Macdonald has announced he won’t run in the 2017 provincial election, saying he wants to finish off his career as an educator.

The surprise announcement comes a year before the provincial election.

Macdonald, who is now 57 years old, said it’s time to get back to the classroom.

“I have been involved in political life for many years, including as Mayor of Golden, where I was able to serve in a public role but also spend my days in the classroom,” said Macdonald in a statement. “While it has been a tremendous honour over these last 11 years to represent the people of Columbia River Revelstoke in the BC Legislature, I miss those daily interactions with students and with fellow educators.”

Macdonald told the Mountaineer he’s seeking a position in the K-12 education system after he completes his term, but he doesn’t have anything lined up yet. Macdonald worked as a teacher and principal in Golden, and for many years as a teacher in Africa. His first elected position was to Golden city council for one term, before being elected mayor of Golden in the late ’90s.

Macdonald has held several Opposition Critic positions in the provincial legislature, including Municipal Affairs; Tourism, Sports and the Arts; Education; Forests, Range and Integrated Land Management; and he currently is the critic for Energy and Mines. He also served as Caucus Chair for the NDP.

Macdonald was first elected in 2005, defeating Liberal incumbent Wendy McMahon. In his campaign platform, Macdonald cast himself as a strong advocate for the riding and rural issues in general. Four years earlier, in 2001, the Liberals swept to power, and their policies resulted in many cuts to provincial services in small towns in the riding.

He has maintained this theme of advocating for rural issues and local input into decision-making throughout his eleven years as MLA.

“This region only gets to choose one person to speak for them. You can have an MLA who simply speaks the party line like we did prior to 2005, or you can have someone who puts this region first.”

In the audio interview published in conjunction with this story, Macdonald said it was simply his desire to finish his career in the classroom that prompted his decision, not any internal politics or disagreements.

“As MLA, my staff and I have been able to assist so many people, often at the most difficult times in their lives, and that is very, very important work. But I feel it is time for someone younger, with more years to give, to take on the position of MLA in 2017.

“I am making this announcement today to ensure that candidates for the nomination have time to organize their campaigns, and to let people know that it is time to get involved in choosing the next MLA for Columbia River–Revelstoke.

Macdonald said the process to select a new candidate for the riding would likely culminate in an NDP riding association election in the fall.

For more, listen to our audio interview with Norm Madonald by clicking on the SoundCloud app above.