MLA in Prince George-North Cariboo · BC provincial 2026
Sheldon Clare
Conservative MLA and Official Opposition House Leader, running again in Prince George-North Cariboo.
Sheldon Clare won Prince George-North Cariboo for the Conservatives in 2024. In 2026 he introduced a private member's bill on car insurance benefits for people who lose a limb, spoke against the budget, and questioned ministers on emergency management, parks and roads in his district.
A researched record of Sheldon Clare's 17 commitments, 13 dated actions and 12 public statements from 2026, with 6 news items. Most come from the legislature record and Conservative caucus releases.
On dates without a confirmed appearance the public schedule is unknown; the candidate may still have activities that day. This static page changes only when its research is updated.
01 / Introduction
About Sheldon Clare
Sheldon Clare is the Conservative Party of BC candidate in Prince George-North Cariboo on Elections BC's list for the general election of October 24, 2026. He won the district in 2024 with 11,430 votes, 56.82% of the valid vote, according to the Elections BC statement of votes. Coralee Oakes, the sitting member, ran as an Independent and received 4,394 votes.
In the legislature in 2026 he introduced Bill M237, which would count the loss of one limb as a catastrophic injury for car insurance benefits. The House sent the bill to a committee on April 22, 2026, by 49 votes to 42. He spoke against the 2026 budget, Bill 2 and Bill 9, and asked ministers about emergency management, park closures and roads and bridges near Quesnel.
In January 2026 he entered the race for the Conservative Party leadership. Black Press Media reported in February that he left the race after falling short of the 250 valid member signatures required. The caucus and CKPG Today report that party leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay named him Official Opposition House Leader in June 2026.
His party and caucus pages say he has taught English and history at the College of New Caledonia since 1993, served as a reserve army officer, and was national president of the National Firearms Association from 2010 to 2021. Those are the party's own statements.
Published positions and selected commitments, separated by election cycle. Status labels describe the evidence reviewed, not a numerical score or a complete audit of the platform. Council approval is different from delivery.
17 commitments shown · Checked Sep 30
2026 · HousingNot established
Count the loss of one limb as a catastrophic injury
Clare introduced Bill M237, the Insurance (Vehicle) Amendment Act, 2026, on March 9, 2026. In the House he said it would count the loss of one limb, instead of two, as a catastrophic injury under the provincial car insurance law, and give injured people more time to claim benefits. He moved second reading on April 20, 2026.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The bill is his own. On April 22, 2026 the House voted 49 to 42 to send it to the committee that reviews the Insurance (Vehicle) Act. My Cariboo Now reported in September 2026 that the committee work was done and that he says the bill can be brought back in the next parliament. He gave no cost.
What still needs checking
Does he bring the bill back after the election, and what did the committee recommend?
In the budget debate on February 19, 2026, Clare spoke against the 2026 budget. He objected to the freeze on income tax bracket indexing and to the provincial sales tax on new services, and said he could not support the budget.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A statement of position. He named no tax rate he would set and no date. The vote index records him voting no on the budget motion and on Bill 2.
What still needs checking
Which of the 2026 tax changes would he reverse, and when?
In the budget debate on February 19, 2026, Clare said small businesses in Prince George and Quesnel face crime and security costs, and objected to the sales tax on security and accounting services. He raised the same point in question period on March 12, 2026.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A statement of position. He named no measure, cost or date of his own.
What still needs checking
What measure for small business would he put forward?
In a members' statement on March 30, 2026, Clare spoke for value-added wood manufacturing and named two firms near Williams Lake. In an August 2026 caucus release he spoke against the curtailment of Quesnel River Pulp, which the release says affects 90 workers.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A statement of support. He named no provincial measure, target or cost.
What still needs checking
Which forestry measure would he support in a new term?
Concern about the environmental assessment changes
In the debate on Bill 15, the Environmental Assessment Amendment Act, 2026, on April 13, 2026, Clare said the new dispute processes add steps and depend on choices by officials, which he said makes project approvals less predictable.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A statement of position on a government bill. He proposed no measure of his own in the part voche.me read.
In the Bill 2 debate on March 9, 2026, Clare spoke against the plan to close the Office of the Merit Commissioner, which reviews hiring in the public service.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A statement of position. The vote index records him voting yes on Motion M203 on merit oversight on March 31, 2026, and no on Bill 2.
In the debate on Bill 9 on May 4, 2026, Clare spoke against changes to the freedom of information law, including the change from "without delay" to "without reasonable delay" for answering requests.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A statement of position. The vote index records him voting no at second and third reading of Bill 9.
In the budget debate on February 19, 2026, Clare named Cariboo road recovery projects, Durrell Road, the Quesnel-Hixon Road, two slides on Highway 97 and the Quesnel interconnector as projects that need attention. In estimates on May 7, 2026 he asked what must happen for the interconnector to reach detailed design and construction.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A statement of position. He named no cost or date of his own.
What still needs checking
Which of these projects would he ask to fund first, and with what budget?
A caucus release on July 15, 2026 quotes Clare on the rail corridor between Squamish and 100 Mile House. The release asks Victoria, Ottawa and CN Rail to set a timeline to find a new operator.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A caucus release. The asks are addressed to three bodies, and the release names no provincial cost or date.
What still needs checking
What would the Province itself do to keep the line open?
In the budget debate on February 19, 2026, Clare objected to lower operating money for the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness. As opposition critic he questioned the minister on the ministry budget in estimates on April 20 and 21, 2026.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A statement of position. He named no amount or date.
What still needs checking
What budget for emergency management would he support?
Speaking for a motion on clean water on March 9, 2026, Clare said the Hixon Community Hall water system no longer meets the legal rules, so residents must haul water. He also spoke about pollution in Bouchie Lake.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A statement of support for another member's motion. He named no measure, cost or date.
What still needs checking
What would he ask the Province to do for the Hixon water supply?
Details on the Prince George involuntary care facility
A caucus release on May 20, 2026 says Clare wrote to the Health Minister asking for the timeline, size, cost and plans of the involuntary care facility promised for Prince George.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A caucus release. It asks for information and states no measure of his own.
What still needs checking
Did the minister answer, and does he support the facility as planned?
A caucus release on June 15, 2026 quotes Clare on arson in downtown Prince George. The Prince George MLAs ask the public safety minister to review bail and release practices for repeat offenders and to fund more downtown enforcement.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A caucus release. Bail is set mostly by federal law. The release names no cost or date.
What still needs checking
What provincial measure on downtown crime would he put forward?
In estimates on April 21, 2026 and in question period on May 19, 2026, Clare questioned the closure of Joffre Lakes Provincial Park and other parks to the public for First Nations cultural use.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
Questions to the minister. He named no measure of his own.
What still needs checking
Would he change the rules for park closures for cultural use?
The Conservative Party platform page lists a plan called Get BC Building, to end the housing shortage. The page says the platform is coming soon and does not name Clare.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
Party text with no details. voche.me found no statement by Clare on housing in 2026.
Recorded votes and bills where an official source names him. A vote is listed only where the vote record names him.
Sent to committee on April 22, 2026
Introduced and moved second reading of Bill M237
Clare introduced Bill M237, the Insurance (Vehicle) Amendment Act, 2026, on March 9 and moved second reading on April 20, 2026, according to the transcripts.
Scope, limits and sources
The bill was his own. The House then voted to send it to a committee, so it did not pass.
The Quesnel Cariboo Observer reports that Clare raised the Clean Team with Northern Health and announced that funding for its coordinator would continue.
Scope, limits and sources
Northern Health told the paper the position was created with the City of Quesnel and that coordinator funding also continues in Fort St. John and Smithers. The decision was Northern Health's.
Records are labelled by type, including official findings, civil proceedings and political disputes where applicable. Each entry identifies the response found in the sources and the latest status verified for this page.
No reviewed entries have been added to this section yet. This is a research gap, not a finding about the candidate.
News coverage / Original publishers
Read the reporting
A dated reading list from independent publishers. The headings below are voche.me summaries; follow each link for the original article, context and any corrections.
Reporting
Black Press Media
Clare enters the Conservative leadership race
Reports his entry into the race, with his own quotes.
Sources checked September 30, 2026. Official records establish decisions; campaign material establishes stated positions; reporting adds investigation and context. None alone establishes every claim.
My Cariboo Now · George Henderson · September 23, 2026
No campaign website of his own was found. sheldonclare.com answered with an empty page and shows no owner. The party candidate page labels him "Interim Conservative Party Leader", which no other source supports, so that label is left out. His posts on X, Facebook and Instagram could not be read, because each returned a page with no readable posts. The estimates debates on Mining and Critical Minerals and on the Premier's Office, the Bill 13 debate and the committee stage of Bill 9 were not read line by line. Votes other than the two divisions on April 22, 2026 are taken from the vote index only. The report of the committee that reviewed Bill M237 was not found. No 2026 all-candidates meeting for Prince George-North Cariboo was found; an all-candidates report that turned up in the search is from the 2024 election. His teaching at the College of New Caledonia, his union bargaining role, his reserve army service, his term as president of the National Firearms Association (the party page says 2010 to 2021; Black Press reports 12 years), his Legion and club roles and his appointment to the Order of St. George come from his party and caucus pages or from his own interviews, and were not checked with the bodies involved. His roles as Deputy Whip and shadow minister come from the caucus page; the transcript of April 13, 2026 records him naming himself the opposition critic for Environment and Parks and for Emergency Management and Climate Readiness. Campaign finances and endorsements were not reviewed. The questionnaire has not been sent.
Research status
What voche.me has checked
Evidence reviewed on 2026-09-30: the Elections BC candidate list and 2024 statement of votes, the legislature's 2026 speech and vote indexes, 19 transcripts where he spoke, his party candidate page and caucus page, the party platform page, nine caucus releases, and six news reports from 2026.
His commitments on this page come from what he said in the legislature and in caucus releases that quote him. The party platform page lists plan titles only. Sections with no entry record that voche.me found nothing on this date.
Proposed questions for a future interview. They have not been sent to the candidate, and no answers have been supplied.
No questions and answers have been supplied.
Have your own question?
Ask Sheldon Clare directly. We send it to the campaign, and publish the reply here if we get one.
05 / About this page
Questions about this page
Facts voche.me can state about Sheldon Clare's page itself, answered directly rather than left blank.
Is this an official page for Sheldon Clare?
No. This page is researched by voche.me from public sources, listed below, and is separate from Sheldon Clare's own campaign.
What party is Sheldon Clare running with?
Sheldon Clare is running for MLA with Conservative Party of BC.
Does Sheldon Clare currently hold public office?
Yes. Sheldon Clare currently serves as MLA for Prince George-North Cariboo.
How many sources does this Sheldon Clare profile cite?
This profile lists 4 sourced references, each with the date voche.me checked it, in the Sources section below.
Why do some questions on Sheldon Clare's page show no answer?
The "Questions & answers" section on this page lists questions voche.me would put to Sheldon Clare in a future interview. They have not been sent yet, so the page says plainly that no answer has been supplied instead of leaving the section blank.
When is the election Sheldon Clare is running in?
The 2026 British Columbia election, including the MLA race, is decided on October 24, 2026.
06 / Candidate contributions
Space for campaign updates
No campaign updates yet
Announcements, event details and messages can be added here, with their source and publication date. No campaign submission has been added.
