An election campaign in BC lasts 28 days. That’s a pretty short time – and it’s already more than ¼ over.

We’re thrilled about what we’ve done already. John Horgan and the BC NDP bus are criss-crossing the province, meeting voters and talking about our commitments to British Columbians. Our amazing volunteer crews are out knocking doors (rain or shine!) and having those face-to-face conversations that really make a difference.

It’s a hugely important time for our campaign, and we’re so excited for what’s to come and what’s possible over the next 21 days.

Because there’s one thing we know for sure: The BC Liberals are making every moment – and every dollar – count. And it’s that last point that has us more than a little concerned.

Big-money donors are doubling down on the BC Liberals

Between 2005 and December 2016, the BC Liberals raised 116,130,619.91. They haven’t slowed down in 2017.

Since January 1st, the BC Liberals have more than $4.4 million dollars. Half of that — $2.2 million — came from just 200 people. That’s an average donation of $11,000. By comparison, our average donation is about $72.

We’re powered mostly by people – and have been for a long time.

The BC NDP has proposed bills to ban corporate and union donations from our political system since 2008. We’ve done it six times – most recently in February and each time the BC Liberals let our bill die on the floor.

Why are they so devoted to keeping big money donations around? Well…

If we win on May 9, this could be the last election that we ever have to hear the words “Big Money”.

Electing us means no more corporate and union donations, a cap on personal donations, no more partisan government ads paid for by your tax dollars and a referendum on how elections are conducted in BC. It’ll transform the ways political parties operate in BC and put power back in the hands of everyday British Columbians.

Electing a BC NDP government means that donations from corporations, unions and people will — for the first time — count exactly the same. That’s huge.

Many races were close in 2013. They could be even closer this time.

The fact is, we don’t have nearly as big of a warchest as the BC Liberals do. They spent $15 million in taxpayer money before the election on partisan ads, and they’re spending millions during the election period.

We know people want to hear John Horgan talk about his commitments — and that when they do, it makes a difference. But right now we’re being drowned out by the BC Liberal machine.

That can have big impacts for some of our excellent candidates in key ridings. Take a look at how close things were in 2013:

• In Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows, the BC Liberals won by just 620 votes.
• In Delta North, the BC Liberals won by 203 votes.
• Education Minister Peter Fassbender won his seat in Surrey-Fleetwood by only 200 votes.
• And in the closest race in the province, the BC NDP’s Selina Robinson won in Coquitlam-Maillardville by just 41 votes.

The BC Liberals are spending lots of money to drown out our voice and hold onto their seats. With your help, we can fight back.

We promise we don’t spend your money on silly things like ‘Truth Trucks’. Your donations help us do the hard work that makes a campaign successful. We need to invest in online programs, get more clipboards and pens for our door-to-door canvassers and buy coffee for our data teams crunching numbers late night. We run on a very tight budget and we make every dollar count.

There are lots of great reasons to donate to our campaign. There aren’t any reasons to wait.

If you believe in John Horgan’s BC NDP and our commitment to building a more affordable British Columbia with better services and stable, good jobs, then please consider making a donation.

Every dollar we get brings us closer, and every dollar we don’t means we have to consider cutting back during the most important days of the campaign.

Make a donation here: www.bcndp.ca/donate