Misty Van Popta is a Canadian politician who was elected to the

Legislative Assembly of British Columbia The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia () is the deliberative assembly of the Legislature of British Columbia, in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The other component of the Legislature is the lieutenant governor of British Columbi ...

in the

2024 British Columbia general election The 2024 British Columbia general election was held on October 19, 2024, to elect 93 members (MLAs) of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Legislative Assembly to serve in the 43rd parliament of the Provinces and territories of Cana ...

. She represents the electoral district of

Langley-Walnut Grove Langley-Walnut Grove is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada. Created under the 2021 British Columbia electoral redistribution, the riding was first contested in the 2024 British Columbia gene ...

as a member of the

Conservative Party of British Columbia The Conservative Party of British Columbia, commonly known as the BC Conservatives and colloquially known as the Tories, is a provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada. It is the main rival to the governing British Columbia New Demo ...

. She was a local councillor for the Township of Langley until May 2025, when MLAs simultaneously holding municipal offices were deemed to have resigned said offices.

Early life and career

Van Popta grew up in the Fern Ridge and Brookswood areas of Langley, where she also raised her two daughters. She was a member of the first graduating class of the

Langley Fine Arts School Langley Fine Arts School is a public elementary school and secondary school in Fort Langley, British Columbia, Canada, and is part of School District 35 Langley. It serves the Fort Langley area and its arts program attracts many students from ac ...

and is a longtime resident of

Fort Langley Fort Langley is a village community in Township of Langley, British Columbia, Canada. It has a population of approximately 3,400 people. It is the home of Fort Langley National Historic Site, a former fur trade post of the Hudson's Bay Company ...

. Van Popta is a project manager in the construction industry and holds a Diploma in

Project Management Project management is the process of supervising the work of a Project team, team to achieve all project goals within the given constraints. This information is usually described in project initiation documentation, project documentation, crea ...

and a Project Management Professional designation from

Simon Fraser University Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a Public university, public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It maintains three campuses in Greater Vancouver, respectively located in Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, British Columbia, Surrey, and ...

. Her career began in the

pharmaceutical industry The pharmaceutical industry is a medical industry that discovers, develops, produces, and markets pharmaceutical goods such as medications and medical devices. Medications are then administered to (or self-administered by) patients for curing ...

in the 1990s, followed by 14 years in technology and pharmaceutical software. She has also co-owned a

bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered transport, human-powered or motorized bicycle, motor-assisted, bicycle pedal, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two bicycle wheel, wheels attached to a ...

shop in

. Van Popta has also been involved in several local organizations, including the Township of Langley's Heritage Advisory Committee, the Langley Christian School Society, the Fort Langley Business Association, and the Fort Langley Cranberry Festival.

Political career

Van Popta first ran for a seat on the Township of Langley Council in 2011. In 2022, she was elected as a councillor as part of the Contract With Langley slate, alongside Mayor

Eric Woodward Lieutenant General Sir Eric Winslow Woodward (21 July 1899 – 29 December 1967) was an Australian military officer and viceroy. Following long service in the Australian Army, including terms as Deputy Chief of the General Staff and General O ...

. As a councillor, she has served on several regional and local bodies, including

Metro Vancouver The Metro Vancouver Regional District (MVRD), or simply Metro Vancouver, is a Canadian political subdivision and Corporation, corporate entity representing the metropolitan area of Greater Vancouver, designated by provincial legislation as o ...

's Water Committee and Climate Action Committee, the Greater Vancouver Regional District Municipal Directors, the

Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. It is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. The organisation reports a worldwide m ...

Gateway of Hope Community Council, and the Township's Recreation, Culture and Parks Advisory Committee. Her stated priorities on council have included addressing school overcrowding, increasing investment in health care and transit, and responding to the impact of provincial legislation on the municipality. In April 2024, Van Popta was nominated as the

's candidate for the riding of

. She was elected to the

in the 2024 provincial election, and was appointed to the official opposition's shadow cabinet as critic for infrastructure and construction. Following her election to the legislature, Van Popta continued to serve concurrently as a councillor and an MLA, a decision that led to criticisms from the

British Columbia New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party of British Columbia (BC NDP) is a social democratic political party in British Columbia, Canada. The party sits on the centre-left of the political spectrum and is one of the two major parties in British Columbia; since ...

, which accused her of double-dipping. On May 29, 2025, the ''Eligibility to Hold Public Office Act,'' which prohibited MLAs from simultaneously holding any municipal offices and deemed any dual officeholders such as Van Popta to have resigned their municipal offices, came into effect.

Electoral record

References

Place of birth missing (living people) Year of birth missing (living people) Living people British Columbia Conservative Party MLAs 21st-century members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia 21st-century Canadian women politicians Women MLAs in British Columbia People from Langley, British Columbia (district municipality) British Columbia municipal councillors {{Conservative-BritishColumbia-MLA-stub

Early life and career

Political career

Electoral record

See also

References