SURREY, B.C. - When voters in Surrey North head to the polls on October 24, the OneBC name on the ballot belongs to a Surrey notary who runs her own businesses and has put street-level crime at the top of her platform. Tanya Gupta is running on the argument that practical business experience matters more in Victoria than political experience.
Gupta is a business owner and Notary Public in British Columbia, with years of experience working directly with individuals, families, professionals, financial institutions, and businesses. Since 2019, she has owned and operated Tanya Gupta Notary Corporation, while also managing and operating SSTG Gas Station. Through those businesses, she has gained firsthand experience with the responsibilities of running an enterprise: managing employees, finances, customers, regulatory requirements, and day-to-day operations.
She holds a Master of Applied Legal Studies from Simon Fraser University and a Bachelor of Computer Applications. She describes herself as a Surrey notary, business owner, and mother who raised her family in the city.
Her top priorities are healthcare, affordability, and public safety. On healthcare, she calls for shorter wait times, more family doctors, and better support for nurses. On the economy, she wants lower taxes for Surrey and for small businesses. And on crime, she says plainly: end extortion, protect shopkeepers, and make neighbourhoods safe – a message that speaks directly to Surrey business owners who have faced threats and violence.
Gupta says her years of working directly with people, operating businesses, and serving clients have given her insight into the responsibilities that come with public service. Her campaign pitch is that practical experience and a community-focused perspective are what the legislature is missing.
OneBC is a new provincial party, formed in June 2025 by former BC Conservative MLAs and led by interim leader Dallas Brodie of Vancouver-Quilchena. The party is running 34 candidates provincewide on lower taxes, balanced budgets, and safer streets.
Surrey North is the most crowded ballot in the city, with six candidates. In 2024, Conservative Mandeep Singh Dhaliwal won with 7,954 votes, 1,159 ahead of the NDP’s Rachna Singh at 6,795. The 2026 field has Dhaliwal and NDP challenger Sahib Thind, plus Parm Bhandol for CentreBC, Yudhbir Gill for the Greens, Gupta for OneBC, and Jag Bhandari as an unaffiliated candidate.
Advance voting in Surrey North runs October 16 to 21, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., at Senator Reid Elementary School. General voting day is Saturday, October 24.
Photo: OneBC (1bc.ca/candidates/tgupta)
Sources: 1bc.ca; Elections BC; Surrey Now-Leader candidate questionnaire (via europesays)
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