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MLA candidates clash on affordability, budgets and future of Abbotsford-Mission
On Wednesday, Sept. 9, four candidates debated affordability and taxation at the Abbotsford Chamber of Commerce in a 90-minute event moderated by Hamish Telford from the University of the Fraser Valley.
The Abbotsford-Mission byelection, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, was triggered when former MLA Reann Gasper resigned on Aug. 22, 2026, to allow Conservative candidate Kerry-Lynne Findley to seek the seat.
Conservative candidate Kerry-Lynne Findley criticized the NDP's Oct. 1 expansion of the seven per cent PST to professional services, while NDP candidate Pam Alexis defended it as necessary to replace eliminated carbon tax revenue.
Findley defended the Conservative Party against claims of internal division following nine recent departures, while Alexis faced questioning about her party's budget transparency and whether she would vote against her own government.
With voting set for Sept. 26, 2026, all four candidates agreed that federal assistance is needed to protect the riding from future floods and that transit solutions are required to ease highway congestion.