Ben Stewart has rejoined the B.C. Liberal caucus for a second term as Kelowna West MLA, bringing the official opposition to 42 seats, one more than the governing NDP.

Stewart took his oath of office Tuesday in the B.C. legislature, after cruising to victory in a by-election Feb. 14 with twice the votes of his NDP rival Shelley Cook.

Stewart said he乌鸦传媒檚 relieved to be back, after the constituency was left without representation following the resignation of former premier Christy Clark. Premier John Horgan waited until January to call the by-election, as the NDP-B.C. Green minority government set about governing.

乌鸦传媒淚 was surprised by how much pent-up demand there was for people looking for an MLA, and it乌鸦传媒檚 been a long six or seven months since we finally got down to the business of having a by-election,乌鸦传媒� Stewart said.

乌鸦传媒淪ome of the damage from last year乌鸦传媒檚 flooding, a lot of it hasn乌鸦传媒檛 been rectified and government hasn乌鸦传媒檛 been very clear in terms of how they乌鸦传媒檙e going to help repair community beaches, working with local governments and residents.乌鸦传媒�

B.C. Liberal leader Andrew Wilkinson said the return of Stewart, who served three years as B.C.乌鸦传媒檚 trade representative in China after stepping down in 2013, changes the dynamic of the legislature.

乌鸦传媒淭hat highlights the fact that the Green Party with its three members holds the balance of power, and as long as they continue to support the NDP, no matter how ridiculous the NDP乌鸦传媒檚 policies are, the onus is on the Green Party to show why they乌鸦传媒檙e doing this,乌鸦传媒� Wilkinson said. 乌鸦传媒淎nd if it乌鸦传媒檚 simply the fact of staying in power, that doesn乌鸦传媒檛 reflect very well on the Green Party, because the NDP will take advantage of them as long as they can.乌鸦传媒�

Alberta乌鸦传媒檚 sudden move to ban B.C. wine sales came during the by-election campaign, and Stewart said it ignited people乌鸦传媒檚 interest in provincial affairs and Premier John Horgan乌鸦传媒檚 opposition to the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

乌鸦传媒淚 think that it spotlighted the fact that British Columbia and Alberta, although governed by the same party, really don乌鸦传媒檛 see eye to eye in terms of how they move ahead on an economic opportunity that乌鸦传媒檚 there,乌鸦传媒� Stewart said. 乌鸦传媒淐learly it brought a lot of attention to the fact that British Columbia had supported the federal government and the continuation of twinning that pipeline.乌鸦传媒�

Related: Stewart to replace Christy Clark in Kelowna West

Related: Final Kelowna West byelection numbers

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