Andrew Wilkinson elected B.C. Liberal leader

Andrew Wilkinson has been chosen as thenew leader of the B.C. Liberal Party, edging out former Conservative MP Dianne Watts on the fifth ballot in a vote Saturday night.

Wilkinson, 60, becomes the third elected leader of the party in 25 years, following Christy Clark and Gordon Campbell.

The oldest candidate in the race, Wilkinson had the most caucus supportwith endorsements from 13 MLAs. He hasa long history with the party, including a stint as its president at the beginning of the century.

In his speech on Saturday,Wilkinson thanked his wife and children as well as party members for sticking with him during the "long process" of the leadership race.

Heurged party members to "remember our priorities ... going into the next few weeks."

"We will have to work together to bringour caucus together to be ready for thefirst day in the legislatureagainst the NDP," Wilkinson said. "And I'll tell you, I am ready for them."

He also called on the party to fight an upcoming referendum on electoral reform, to cheers from the crowd of 500 at Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre.

Wilkinson has served in several cabinet positions, including as minister of advanced education, minister of technology and innovation andattorney general.

Immigrating from Australia to Kamloops at the age of four, Wilkinson was a doctor and lawyer before becoming a deputy minister in the Gordon Campbell government.

He was elected MLA for Vancouver-Quilchena in 2013, and re-elected in 2017.

• PROFILE |AndrewWilkinson: the man with theresum

The former cabinet ministerran on a platform of a strong economy, including abolishing the small business income tax on family businessesand fighting the electoral reform referendum scheduled for this fall.

Wilkinson won on the fifth ballot with just over 53 per cent of the vote. Watts, who led the first four ballots, came second with 46.9 per cent.

She congratulated Wilkinson in a tweet on Saturday evening, saying she's still "committed" to the party.

Former transportation minister Todd Stone, one-time finance minister Mike de Jong and Liberal caucus members Sam Sullivan and Michael Lee were eliminated earlier in the evening.

Around 60,000 party members voted online and by phone to replace Christy Clark.

The former premier resigned after the NDP formed a minority government with the support of the Green Party following a non-confidence vote that brought down the Liberals in June.

With files from the Canadian Press, Justin McElroy and Deborah Goble