NDP's Bonita Zarrillo ousts Conservative incumbent Nelly Shin in Port Moody-Coquitlam

Vancouver -

NDP candidate Bonita Zarrillo has won in Port Moody-Coquitlam, ousting former Conservative MP Nelly Shin, according to the CTV News Decision Desk.

As of 9:11 p.m., with 61 per cent of polls reporting, Zarrillo had claimed 37 per cent of the vote, beating out the incumbent Shin, who had captured 30 per cent of votes.

The upset comes in a riding that was up for grabs: during the last election, only 1,160 votes separated the first-place Conservatives, second-place NDP and third-place Liberals.

Zarrillo, is a business analyst and three-term Coquitlam city councilor, who ran against Shin in the last election.

Shin, a recording artist and former teacher, first won against Zarrillo during the last federal election.

The riding’s Liberal candidate, Will Davis, was trailing in third with 29 per cent of the vote.

All three candidates focused their campaigns on issues affecting families, who they say are at the heart of the riding that includes Port Moody, western parts of Coquitlam, as well as Anmore and Belcarra.

The riding, with a population of 126,000, has a higher-than-average annual family income. Whereas the average family income in Canada is just under $110,000, the average in Port Moody-Coquitlam is $128,000.

Zarrillo, who describes herself as a champion for women and working parents, has four generations of her family in the community.

Just under 43 per cent of residents identify as a visible minority, whereas 25 per cent of the total Canadian population say the same. Shin, the first Korean-born MP in Canada, has said she was uniquely able to connect with hard-working immigrants and understand their stories.