After the Breakup: MLAs Behind BC Conservative Rift Launch New Party
Two sitting BC MLAs who left the province’s Conservative party earlier this year are now founding members of a newly registered political party called One BC.
One BC, registered with Elections BC on June 9, lists Vancouver—Quilchena MLA Dallas Brodie as interim leader and Kelowna—Lake Country—Coldstream MLA Tara Armstrong as house leader. The party’s website describes it as committed to “prosperity for all.”
Brodie and Armstrong were elected in 2024 under the BC Conservative banner but left the caucus this spring amid controversy. Brodie was expelled after posting comments that questioned the existence of burial sites at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School, while Armstrong and Peace River North MLA Jordan Kealy quit the party shortly after in protest. Armstrong accused Conservative leader John Rustad of abandoning his moral compass in a “quest for power.”
The pair were joined in their departure by Peace River North MLA Jordan Kealy, although he is not listed on the One BC website and has not made any public statements about the new party as of publication.
In a statement issued Thursday, Brodie said she launched the new party after concluding that none of the existing options “had the integrity or courage to make the bold changes we need to survive,” accusing the current government of presiding over a decade of “socialist policies.”
On its website, One BC identified the dismantling of what it called the “reconciliation industry” as one of its key cultural goals, accusing it of exploiting indigenous suffering for profit. Brodie is described on the site as a leading critic of the “industry,” while Armstrong has also drawn criticism for statements rejecting what she referred to as “unfounded sovereignty claims.”
The party’s emergence follows months of unrest within the BC Conservative Party, which began soon after it won Official Opposition status in last year’s election. At the party’s annual general meeting in March, tensions flared over allegations of internal power plays and undemocratic practices, with party leader John Rustad accused by dissidents of consolidating control and censoring grassroots voices.
At the time, Armstrong publicly condemned Rustad. As for Brodie, her refusal to retract her residential school comments caused additional turmoil within the party, but the post remained online despite calls for its removal.
Former Conservative candidate Tim Thielmann — who was dismissed as caucus research chair after co-signing a letter that was critical of party leadership — was listed as a contact for One BC earlier today. However, his name has disappeared as of publication.
A source who previously worked closely with Thielmann and Brodie described the contingent as “cult-like,” alleging that Thielmann largely controls who Brodie communicates with.
The full platform of One BC has not yet been made public, and the party’s website was temporarily taken down, hours after its existence was reported in the media.
