Adam Olsen is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

politician, who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2017 provincial election. He represents the electoral district of

Saanich North and the Islands Saanich North and the Islands is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada. It is located in the northern suburbs of the provincial capital, Victoria, and includes the southern Gulf Islands. Saanic ...

as a member of the

Green Party of British Columbia The Green Party of British Columbia, often simply called the BC Greens, is a provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada. It was founded in 1983 and is based in Victoria. The party won its first seat in the Legislative Assembly of Br ...

caucus.

Political career

Olsen was elected to the Legislative Assemby of British Columbia in the general 2017 provincial election in the riding of

. Olsen previously ran in the same district in the 2013 provincial election, losing narrowly to Gary Holman. Following the election, he served as the party's interim leader between the resignation of Jane Sterk and the election of

Andrew Weaver Andrew John Weaver is a Canadian scientist and politician who represented the riding of Oak Bay-Gordon Head from 2013 to 2020 in the British Columbia Legislative Assembly. Weaver was the leader of the Green Party of British Columbia from 2015 ...

. Olsen joins the first minority government in British Columbia since the 1952 elections. In the 2017 British Columbia general election the Liberal Party won 43 seats, the New Democratic Party won 41 seats, and the Green Party won three seats. As no single party won a majority of seats, the Green Party was approached by both the BC Liberal Party and BC NDP to determine whether they would support a minority government or a coalition government headed by either party. No

grand coalition A grand coalition is an arrangement in a multi-party parliamentary system in which the two largest political parties of opposing political ideologies unite in a coalition government. The term is most commonly used in countries where there ar ...

or agreement between the two large parties, excluding the Greens, was seriously considered. On May 29, NDP leader John Horgan and Green leader

announced that the Greens would provide

confidence and supply In a parliamentary democracy based on the Westminster system, confidence and supply are required for a ruling cabinet to retain power in the lower house. A confidence-and-supply agreement is one whereby a party or independent members of par ...

to an NDP minority government, a position which was endorsed the following day by the members of both caucuses. On October 7, 2019, Andrew Weaver announced he will step down as party leader once a new leader has been chosen. On December 20, 2019, Olsen was appointed interim leader, following the resignation of Andrew Weaver. He took office effective January 6, 2020. Olsen is a member of the Tsartlip First Nation in Brentwood Bay and served as a two-term Central Saanich Councillor prior to his election.

Electoral record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Olsen, Adam 1976 births Living people 21st-century Canadian politicians 21st-century First Nations people British Columbia municipal councillors Coast Salish people First Nations politicians Green Party of British Columbia MLAs Leaders of the Green Party of British Columbia