# Surrey-Newton (provincial electoral district)

Surrey-Newton is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada.
The riding was first created out of the two-member Surrey district, which had been in existence since 1966, and first returned members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) in the 1986 election. Surrey had always been a battleground between the NDP and Social Credit, trading back and forth between the two parties. The riding was represented by Premier Rita Johnston, who was a prominent Cabinet minister in the Vander Zalm government between 1986 and 1991.
In 1991, Penny Priddy defeated Johnston in a realigning election that saw Social Credit experience massive defeats all across the province. During the NDP government from 1991 to 2001, Priddy emerged as a prominent Cabinet minister in portfolios such as Women's Equality, Tourism and Culture, Health, Labour and Children and Families.
Although the riding was won by the Liberals during their 2001 landslide victory, it has been a relatively safe NDP seat since the 2005 election. The riding is home to a large South Asian community, whose population grew tremendously in the city Surrey starting in the early 1990s. The shift towards the NDP can largely be attributed to the party's inroads in the Indo-Canadian community.

## Demographics

| Population, 2001 | 50,281 |
| Population change, 1996–2001 | 16.4% |
| Area (km$^2$) | 21 |
| Population density (people per km$^2$) | 2,388 |

## Geography
### 1999 redistribution

Surrey-Newton has its entire southern half removed.

## Member of the Legislative Assembly

Its MLA is Jessie Sunner. She was first elected in 2024. She represents the New Democratic Party of British Columbia.
Surrey-Newton :
| Assembly | Years | Member | Party |
| Surrey prior to 1986 |||||
| 34th | 1986–1991 | Rita Johnston | Social Credit |
| 35th | 1991–1996 | Penny Priddy | New Democratic |
| 36th | 1996–2001 | Penny Priddy | New Democratic |
| 37th | 2001–2005 | Tony Bhullar | Liberal |
| 38th | 2005–2009 | Harry Bains | New Democratic |
| 39th | 2009–2013 | Harry Bains | New Democratic |
| 40th | 2013–2017 | Harry Bains | New Democratic |
| 41st | 2017–2020 | Harry Bains | New Democratic |
| 42nd | 2020–2024 | Harry Bains | New Democratic |
| 43rd | 2024–present | Jessie Sunner | New Democratic |

## Election results

2024 British Columbia general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Jessie Sunner | 7,924 | 51.2% |
| | Conservative | Tegjot Bal | 6,658 | 43.0% |
| | Freedom | Amrit Birring | 371 | 2.4% |
| | Unaffiliated | Japreet Lehal | 344 | 2.2% |
| | Independent | Joginder Singh Randhawa | 189 | 1.2% |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 15,486 | – |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | |
| Registered voters | Registered voters | Registered voters | |
| Source: Elections BC |||||||
2020 provincial election redistributed results :
| Party | % |
| New Democratic | 62.4 |
| Liberal | 29.9 |
| Green | 7.5 |
vte2020 British Columbia general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures |
| | New Democratic | Harry Bains | 8,893 | 62.64 | +5.27 | $39,066.98 |
| | Liberal | Paul Boparai | 3,911 | 27.55 | −2.38 | $0.00 |
| | Green | Asad Syed | 1,393 | 9.81 | +2.83 | $6,482.79 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 14,197 | 100.00 | – |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 111 | 0.78 | +0.11 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 14,308 | 47.91 | –10.23 |
| Registered voters | Registered voters | Registered voters | 29,867 |
| Source: Elections BC |||||||
vte2017 British Columbia general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures |
| | New Democratic | Harry Bains | 9,744 | 57.31 | +0.89 | $41,769 |
| | Liberal | Gurminder Singh Parihar | 5,099 | 29.99 | −8.08 | $73,162 |
| | Green | Richard Krieger | 1,172 | 6.89 | – | $225 |
| | No affiliation | Balpreet Singh Bal | 988 | 5.81 | – | $8,768 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 17,003 | 100.00 | – |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 114 | 0.67 | −0.42 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 17,117 | 58.14 | +5.58 |
| Registered voters | Registered voters | Registered voters | 29,442 |
| Source: Elections BC |||||||
vte2013 British Columbia general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures |
| | New Democratic | Harry Bains | 9,788 | 56.42 | −12.51 | $90,282 |
| | Liberal | Sukhminder S. Virk | 6,604 | 38.07 | +2.25 | $86,997 |
| | Conservative | Satinder Singh | 674 | 3.89 | – | $3,660 |
| | Helping Hand | Alan Saldanha | 282 | 1.63 | – | $250 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 17,348 | 100.00 |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 191 | 1.09 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 17,539 | 52.56 |
| Source: Elections BC |||||||
vte2009 British Columbia general election :
| Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| New Democratic | Harry Bains | 10,709 | 68.93 | +11.04 |
| Liberal | Ajay Caleb | 4,011 | 25.82 | −9.07 |
| Green | Trevor Loke | 759 | 4.89 | +0.17 |
| Communist | George Gidora | 58 | 0.37 | – |
vte2005 British Columbia general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | New Democratic | Harry Bains | 10,741 | 57.89 |
| | Liberal | Daniel Igali | 6,473 | 34.89 |
| | Green | Dan Deresh | 876 | 4.72 |
| | Democratic Reform | Harry Grewal | 268 | 1.44 |
| | Work Less | Gordon Scott | 123 | 0.66 |
| | Platinum | Jeff Robert Evans | 72 | 0.39 |
| Total | Total | Total | 18,553 | 100.00 |
B.C. General Election 2001: Surrey-Newton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Liberal | Tony Bhullar | 6,750 | 49.45% | | $51,429 |
| | NDP | Param Grewal | 3,949 | 28.93% | | $32,318 |
| | Green | David Walters | 1,673 | 12.26% | – | $2,471 |
| | Unity | Paul Joshi | 498 | 3.65% | | $4,578 |
| | Marijuana | Stephen Kawamoto | 364 | 2.20% | | $394 |
| | Reform | Margaret Bridgman | 159 | 0.96% | | $1,285 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 13,649 | 100.00% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 92 | 0.67% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 13,741 | 65.51% |
B.C. General Election 1996: Surrey-Newton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | NDP | Penny Priddy | 13,969 | 49.54% | | $42,833 |
| | Liberal | Indra Thind | 9,788 | 34.71% | | $54,778 |
| | Progressive Democrat | Ian Brown | 1,841 | 6.53% | – | $100 |
| | Reform | Liaqat Bajwa | 1,244 | 4.41% | | $12,184 |
| | Family Coalition | Bill Stilwell | 577 | 2.05% | – | $890 |
| | Green | Maureen A. MacDonald | 340 | 1.21% | – | $100 |
| | Conservative | John Keith Bannister | 217 | 0.77% | | $931 |
| | Social Credit | Neil Maharaj | 174 | 0.62% | – | $3,600 |
| | Natural Law | Shane Laporte | 48 | 0.17% | | $118 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 28,198 | 100.00% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 244 | 0.86% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 28,442 | 71.33% |
B.C. General Election 1991: Surrey-Newton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | NDP | Penny Priddy | 10,193 | 42.28% | | $47,584 |
| | Social Credit | Rita Johnston | 7,796 | 32.33% | – | $126,919 |
| | Liberal | A. Charles McKinney | 5,923 | 24.57% | | $1,942 |
| | Green | Paul George | 197 | 0.82% | – | $2,740 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 24,109 | 100.00% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 638 | 2.58% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 24,747 | 76.28% |