Veteran police officer Terry Yung wins Yaletown MLA seat

Terry Yung. (BC NDP)

Terry Yung is projected to win the MLA seat for Vancouver-Yaletown for the BC NDP.

At the time of writing at 10:14 pm, Yung has secured 8,501 votes (49.5%). This is based on all five advance voting ballot boxes and 12 of the 13 final voting day ballot boxes reported.

He has come above the 7,499 votes (43.7%) of former Vancouver city councillor Melissa De Genova of the Conservative Party of BC, and the 1,178 votes (6.9%) for Dana-Lyn Mackenzie of the BC Green Party.

This past summer, prior to announcing his intention to run for office, Yung retired from the Vancouver Police Department after three decades of service, most recently as an inspector for the department.

You might also like:

Yung is the husband of ABC Vancouver city councillor Sarah Kirby-Yung.

Earlier this month, in an op-ed for Daily Hive Urbanized, Yung focused on identifying solutions to address crime and public safety concerns in the Yaletown neighbourhood.

He suggested the need to focus on three strategies, entailing getting people off the streets and into housing with proper security and support, providing more addictions and mental health treatment services, and providing police and the courts with stronger tools to deal with repeat offenders.

“As a long-serving police officer, I have seen problems with public safety, addiction and open drug use worsen with the introduction of dangerous opioids. I’ve had to be the one delivering the hard news to families who have lost their loved ones to addiction and violence. It’s why I am so passionate about doing the hard work to take on this challenge,” wrote Yung.

“In my time as a police officer, I’ve also seen governments of all political stripes come and go at all levels. And I can tell you this: the politicians who tell you they can fix public safety in our communities with the wave of a wand are guaranteed to make the problem worse.”

Yung was also the longtime board chair of the non-profit social service organization SUCCESS (United Chinese Community Enrichment Services Society) and was involved with other organizations such as the Big Brothers of Greater Vancouver, the Vancouver Cambie Lions Club, and the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver. He is a recipient of the BC Medal of Good Citizenship and a Melvin Jones Fellow.

Up until this year’s election, Vancouver-Yaletown’s geographical areas were part of the Vancouver-False Creek riding.

The previous Vancouver-False Creek riding spanned not only the southeast corner of the downtown Vancouver peninsula (Yaletown) but also the areas of Southeast False Creek, False Creek South, and parts of Fairview, Burrard Slopes, and Kitsilano.

In contrast, Vancouver-Yaletown is isolated within a portion of the downtown Vancouver peninsula, covering not only Yaletown but also other areas of North False Creek, Northeast False Creek, Gastown, and much of the Central Business District.

Between 2013 and 2020, the riding of Vancouver-False Creek was held by former Vancouver mayor Sam Sullivan.

In the 2020 provincial election, Vancouver-False Creek was won by the BC NDP’s Brenda Bailey, who is the Minister of Jobs, Economic Development, and Innovation. She is seeking re-election by running for Vancouver-South Granville in the 2024 election, following the redrawing of a handful of boundary ridings south of the downtown Vancouver peninsula.

You might also like: