Cowichan—Malahat—Langford (British Columbia) 75/338

Cowichan—Malahat—Langford (British Columbia)

Today we're still on Vancouver Island with Cowichan—Malahat—Langford!

Cowichan—Malahat—Langford has existed as a riding since the 2012 redistribution, created from Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca and Nanaimo—Cowichan. The population was 108,052 in 2016. The population centers are Langford (35,342 in 2016), North Cowichan (29,676 in 2016), and Duncan (4,944 in 2016). The riding itself has grown by 8.9% from 2011-2016, with Langford experiencing 20.9% growth.

Politically, it is pretty similar to Courtenay—Alberni in the sense that it had been a reliable NDP seat up to 1993, staying in the hands of conservatives until 2004/2011 (depending on which riding you look at). In 2015 and 2019, all four major parties had over 15% support in the riding, which is a testament to how diverse the political landscape is within this riding. The riding is currently represented by NDP MP Alistair MacGregor.

Quick fun facts: Former Premier Dave Barrett represented this seat federally, which is interesting because all of his provincial seats were in the Lower Mainland. Additionally, Premier John Horgan and Green Leader Sonia Furstenau both hold their provincial seats in this riding. Cowichan means the “warm land” in local hul'qumi'num language, and the Cowichan First Nation is the largest first nation in British Columbia. The riding is also the epicenter for the Fairy Creek Old Growth protests. In 2019, this seat was 22/42 in BC and 97/338 in Canada by margin.

Rating: 

Name: 9.2/10 - I actually really like the name, there aren't too many other names it could take. It just is a bit wordy, but not awful.

Shape: 7.4/10 - Pretty good, mostly coastal. Not a huge fan of the suburban Victoria boundaries.

Individuality: 8.8/10 - It's really interesting how diverse the riding is politically, especially 2015. And the notable names are impressive too.

Total: 25.4/30 (84.7%)

Tomorrow we're in the Maritimes with Cumberland—Colchester!