The

premier of British Columbia The premier of British Columbia is the first minister and head of government for the Canadian province of British Columbia. Until the early 1970s, the title ''prime minister of British Columbia'' was often used. The word ''premier'' is derived ...

is the

first minister A first minister is any of a variety of leaders of government cabinets. The term literally has the same meaning as "prime minister" but is typically chosen to distinguish the office-holder from a superior prime minister. Currently the title of ' ...

for the

Canadian province Canada has ten provinces and three territories that are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Constitution of Canada, Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North Amer ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. The province was a British crown colony governed by the governors of British Columbia before joining

Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation () was the process by which three British North American provinces—the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick—were united into one federation, called the Name of Canada#Adoption of Dominion, Dominion of Ca ...

in 1871. Since then, it has had a

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature consisting of one house or assembly that legislates and votes as one. Unicameralism has become an increasingly common type of legislature, making up nearly ...

Westminster-style

parliamentary government A parliamentary system, or parliamentary democracy, is a form of government where the head of government (chief executive) derives their democratic legitimacy from their ability to command the support ("confidence") of a majority of the legisl ...

, in which the premier is the leader of the party that controls the most seats in the legislative assembly. The premier is British Columbia's

head of government In the Executive (government), executive branch, the head of government is the highest or the second-highest official of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presid ...

, and the of Canada is its

head of state A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 "

he head of state He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...

being an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...

and is represented by the

lieutenant governor of British Columbia The lieutenant governor of British Columbia () is the representative of the monarch in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The office of lieutenant governor is an office of the Crown and serves as a representative of the monarchy in the p ...

. The premier picks a cabinet from the elected members to form the

Executive Council of British Columbia The Executive Council of British Columbia (the Cabinet) is the Cabinet of the Canadian province of British Columbia. Almost always composed of members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, the Cabinet is similar in structure and rol ...

and presides over that body. Members are first elected to the legislature during

general elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...

. General elections must be conducted every four years from the date of the last election. An election may also take place if the governing party loses the confidence of the legislature by the defeat of a supply bill or tabling of a no-confidence motion. Before 1903, British Columbia did not use a party system; instead, premiers of British Columbia had no official party affiliation and were chosen by elected members of the legislative assembly from among themselves. Candidates ran as "Government", "Opposition", "Independent", or in formulations such as "Opposition independent", indicating their respective positions to the incumbent regime. British Columbia has had 36 individuals serve as premier since joining Confederation, of which 14 individuals had no party affiliation, three were

Conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilizati ...

, eight were Liberals, four were Socreds, and seven were

New Democrats New Democrats may refer to: * New Democratic Party, a social democratic party in Canada * New Democrats (United States), the ideological centrist faction of the Democratic Party ** New Democrat Coalition, the related caucus in the United State ...

. The first premier was

John Foster McCreight John Foster McCreight, (1827 – 18 November 1913) was a jurist and the first premier of British Columbia. Early life McCreight was born in Caledon, County Tyrone, Ireland, to a well-established and well-connected family. After completing l ...

, who was inaugurated in 1871. Joseph Martin spent the shortest time in office, at 106 days. At over twenty years,

W. A. C. Bennett William Andrew Cecil Bennett (September 6, 1900 – February 23, 1979) was a Canadian politician who served as the 25th premier of British Columbia from 1952 to 1972. With just over 20 years in office, Bennett remains the longest-serving premier ...

spent the longest time in office and is the only premier to serve in more than five parliaments. The incumbent premier is

David Eby David Robert Patrick Eby (; born July 21, 1976) is a Canadian politician and lawyer who has served as the 37th and current premier of British Columbia since November 18, 2022. Eby is a member of the British Columbia New Democratic Party (NDP) a ...

, who was sworn in on November 18, 2022.

Premiers of British Columbia

Notes

References

General

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Premiers of British Columbia, List of

* Lists of political office-holders in British Columbia

Premiers of British Columbia

See also

Notes

References

General