A freedom convoy donor brings big city party politics to a small B.C. town

A big city political trend has come to the Okanagan town of Osoyoos, B.C., this election cycle as a businessman with ties to the Freedom Convoy protests has created a political slate and put together a team of candidates in an effort to win a majority of council seats.

Osoyoos First, led by mayoral candidate Dustin Sikora, has a well-organized website with individual bios for each candidate, vision statements and a list of ways to donate.

The emergence of the slate has created a lot of enthusiasm in the community of 5,500 people over shared ideas to tackle long-standing issues but also concern because of Sikora's links to the protest movement.

'Slates uncommon for smaller centres'

The four men running under the Osoyoos First banner are relatively young — under the age of 45 — and rookie candidates.

The collective is promising to fix long-standing issues with water quality and sewage treatment by using new technological solutions. They are also pledging to address housing shortages and to bring doctors to Osoyoos — things they say the incumbent mayor and town councillors have not been able to achieve.

In addition to its website, Osoyoos First has an active social media presence and campaign videos. It has put on multiple events so the public can meet the candidates.

While party politics of this nature are common in larger Lower Mainland municipalities, it is rare in the B.C. Interior, said Hamish Telford, an associate professor of political science at the University of the Fraser Valley.

"Slates are very uncommon for smaller centres around British Columbia."

"The logic of a slate makes sense in smaller centres as well as it does in larger centres. I just hadn't expected the phenomenon to take root in the smaller centres just yet."

Freedom convoy ties

Early in the election campaign, it was revealed Sikora had donated approximately $23,000 to the Freedom Convoy movement — the fifth largest Canadian donation. 

Sikora addressed the issue on the Osoyoos First website. However, his ties to the convoy movement concern some people in the town.

"The convoy is definitely a polarizing subject," said Susan Knox, the president of the Osoyoos Secondary PAC. 

"We had convoys at the Osoyoos border that were not peaceful. There was a woman ... a reporter, who was spat on at the convoy." 

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Sikora did not make himself available for an interview despite repeated requests.

In his written statement, Sikora said he doesn't hide or apologize for his donation and explained he did it "in the early stages of the movement" as a way of "pushing back against what I felt was harmful government overreach." 

Sikora is one of a number of candidates across B.C. connected to the convoy movement, according to Telford.

"It's not surprising they are moving into the political realm, especially at the municipal level."

"You just need to get a few of your friends to sign nomination forms, and you are good to go, and so this is an obvious venue for this fledgling social movement." 

'Let's move forward'

Fellow Osoyoos First candidate Zach Poturica believes Sikora addressed his donation to the convoy well and said it's time to focus on issues connected to Osoyoos.

"Let's move forward," Poturica said. "We are running for the right reasons. We are running because we feel we can contribute to this community."

Sikora and Osoyoos First have prominent supporters in the town, including two former mayors who have given their endorsements. 

"They've got the fire. They want to effect change," said former mayor Stu Wells. "If we've done nothing else in Osoyoos, we've created one of the biggest waves of interest in civic politics ever."

Challenging the incumbents

There's a real opportunity for Osoyoos First to win a majority of five seats on town council. 

In addition to Sikora's slate, there are only four other candidates on the ballot, three of whom are seeking re-election: incumbent Sue McKortoff, the only other mayoral candidate and councillors Jim King and Myers Bennet.

McKortoff won landslide victories in the past two municipal elections and said she is up for the fight to keep her seat.

She is running on her track record as mayor and political accomplishments, including a new sewage lift station, downtown revitalization and her leadership during the pandemic. 

"[Sikora] doesn't have the experience with local government or with the Local Government Act and community charter," McKortoff said.

She says the solutions Sikora and Osoyoos First are presenting to fix the town's water issues won't be easy to implement.

"It is much more difficult than he would lead you to believe," she said.

She wants people to ask questions and make an informed decision on who they think is the best candidate to lead the town.

Whether Sikora's ties to the convoy movement ultimately sway voters one way or the other remains to be seen.