Conservatives make big gains in Surrey as swing city plays big role in election outcome

A wave rolled through Surrey on Saturday, nearly painting the town blue, as B.C. Conservatives are leading or elected in seven of the ten provincial ridings in the city.

City councillor Linda Annis has a pretty good idea what motivated Surrey voters on the way to the ballot box.

"Since I've been elected I think something like 60 to 70 thousand people have moved to Surrey," she told CTV News.

"The residents of Surrey have felt ignored for many, many years. The city is growing so quickly. It will be bigger than Vancouver soon if not already. We're so lacking in transportation and other infrastructure projects."

Despite a new hospital coming to Cloverdale, a SkyTrain extension connecting the city to Langley, and a replacement for the aging Patullo Bridge, B.C. Conservative candidate Elenore Sturko hammered home the message that Surrey is a forgotten city under the NDP.

"The NDP have been neglecting our city for the past seven years and the people of Surrey have had enough," she said on Saturday night.

"We've seen quite a change in Surrey and I think it's indicative of the change we need in our city."

Sturko holds the lead in Surrey-Cloverdale while awaiting the final results.

Two-term MLA and former NDP cabinet minister Jinny Sims went down in defeat in her Surrey-Panorama riding where B.C. Conservative Bryan Tepper prevailed.

"This campaign has energized me. It's made me realize what fighting for the kind of BC I want is all about. And I can say this, I'm proud of the work we've done," Sims told CTV News on election night.

The NDP entered the race with incumbents in seven of the nine Surrey ridings contested during the last election.

The new riding of Surrey-Serpentine River was also won by former Surrey mayor Linda Hepner of the BC Conservatives.

"Surrey was the battleground and they pretty much ran the table there, or nearly did," said University of the Fraser Valley political scientist Hamish Telford.

"That was quite shocking how well they did in Surrey given some of their more problematic candidates were in Surrey as well."

B.C. Conservative Brent Chapman is on his way to Victoria to represent Surrey-South, despite repeated calls for him to step aside over several controversial statements he has made on social media over the years.

In Surrey-City Centre, less than 100 votes separate the NDP's Amna Shah and B.C. Conservative Zeeshan Wahla, triggering an automatic recount with the potential to cost the NDP another seat.