For the past 17 years, John Weston has been a familiar name on the ballot in the federal West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country riding.
Following the retirement of longtime member of Parliament John Reynolds in 2006, Weston carried the banner of the Conservative Party of Canada in the riding for five of the last six federal elections, between 2006 to 2021 (missing only 2019, when Gabrielle Loren ran in his stead). He was elected twice, in 2008 and 2011.
With the October 2025 federal election growing closer and the potential of a snap election always looming, Weston has increasingly been hearing calls to run again, but has decided to focus on other endeavours.
On June 16, Weston officially announced he would not seek the Conservative Party nomination for the riding, citing a desire to focus his efforts on the Canadian Health and Fitness Institute, a non-profit he founded in 2017, which aims to make Canada the fittest nation on earth.
“I decided to not run again for office on the presumption that I can get more done in public life working on this non-profit,” Weston said.
Weston wanted to clarify his election intentions to encourage more people to think about running for the party. He noted that, while the nomination contest is not formally open, informally, there’s a gap with the traditional candidate-of-record out of the picture.
“I hope there will be a very hotly contested race among conservatives who want to represent the party in the next federal election,” Weston said.
“I think that it really helps the community when people get out and start talking about issues that relate to our health as a community, and how we all work together with all of our differences to support the neediest people in our community and to proclaim the best practices of our high-achieving members of the community.”
Weston encouraged residents to look at the prospects of being a member of Parliament, noting that it’s a demanding but gratifying job. He added that a contested nomination “breathes fresh air of freedom when different people agreeably disagree in a race to represent a party.”
As for the prospects for the future candidate, the riding is gearing up for another close race.
Traditionally, the West Vancouver portion of the riding votes Conservative by a considerable margin, with the remaining areas flipping between the Greens, Liberals, NDP and Conservatives. Since 2008, the riding has been something of a bellwether, with its winning candidate representing the party that forms government every election.
In 2021, the Conservatives came within 3.9 per cent of winning the riding in what ended up being a close three-way race between Patrick Weiler, representing the Liberals, Weston with the Conservatives, and Avi Lewis with the New Democratic Party. Weiler won the riding with 33.9 per cent of the vote, the smallest winning margin in the riding’s history.
Poll aggregator 338Canada.com, which takes national poll averages and applies them to local ridings, is projecting a toss-up between the Liberals and Conservatives with 31 per cent each, with the NDP following closely behind with 27 per cent.
The riding will change shape in the next election, as the 2022 Electoral Boundaries Commission proposed the removal of the Xwemelch’stn, formally known as the Capilano Indian Reserve No. 5, located on the southern boundary of West Vancouver, as well as a significant portion of West Vancouver between 21st Street and Highway 99. Both sections will be added to the neighbouring North Vancouver riding.
Incumbent Weiler has not announced if he will seek re-election in the next federal election, and so far, neither the NDP nor Green Party has confirmed candidates.
Weston believes the party has a good shot at winning back the seat. He hopes that as the election grows nearer, people look at the party’s leader, the party itself, and the individual running locally before making their decision.
“I’ll just say that it’s going to be a hotly contested race, as it always is. And there will be some very good candidates who run for all the parties; there always are,” Weston said.
“I would say that anybody who wants this job should start early. Think about the things that matter in this community and this country and make sure that they consult with the people in their lives who really ought to be consulted and can add to that decision. It’s a big decision.”
