SURREY, B.C. - No incumbent in British Columbia knows better than Garry Begg how much every single vote counts. The BC NDP MLA for Surrey-Guildford kept his seat in 2024 by just 22 votes after a judicial recount, and that razor-thin result is the backdrop to everything about his re-election campaign this fall.
Begg’s career before politics was spent in uniform. Born and raised in Ontario, he served 38 years with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, attaining the rank of inspector. His last eight years in the force were spent in Surrey, where he worked as a district commander, watch commander and operations support officer. He first tested politics federally, running for the New Democratic Party in Fleetwood-Port Kells in 2015, then won the new Surrey-Guildford seat provincially in 2017 and held it in 2020.
In Victoria, Begg has moved through senior public safety roles. He was named Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General in November 2024, and in July 2025 became Parliamentary Secretary for Surrey Infrastructure, a role focused on the infrastructure pressures of B.C.’s fastest-growing city. He says he entered politics to keep serving the public, tackling crime, improving hospital care, getting students out of portables and into real classrooms, and addressing transportation needs south of the Fraser River.
His 2026 priorities lead with affordability: lower grocery bills and fuel costs for local families, maintaining the ICBC rate freeze through 2030, and expanding access to doctors and timely local care. In his first 100 days, he says, he would support suspending 10 cents per litre of fuel tax, capping grocery profits on essentials, building 20 team-based primary-care clinics including three more in Surrey, adding 1,000 health-worker training seats, and opening faster pathways for qualified internationally trained doctors.
None of it is guaranteed to matter if the vote splits the wrong way. In 2024, Begg finished with 8,947 votes (46.83 per cent) to Conservative Honveer Singh Randhawa’s 8,925 (46.81 per cent). Initial results had Randhawa ahead, the count flipped as mail-in and absentee ballots were tallied, and the automatic judicial recount, completed November 8, confirmed Begg by 22 votes, the result that preserved the NDP’s majority government.
This time the Conservative challenge comes from Garry Thind, the Surrey School Board vice-chair, while Green candidate Jodi Murphy is running in the riding for a third time. Begg is married, with two adult children and two grandchildren.
Advance voting in Surrey-Guildford runs October 16 to 21, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., at Holly Elementary School (10719 150 Street, open October 16 to 21), Ellendale Elementary School (14525 110A Avenue, open October 17 to 18), Fraser Wood Elementary School (10650 164 Street, open October 17 to 18), and North Surrey Secondary School (15945 96 Avenue, open October 17 to 18). General voting day is Saturday, October 24.
Photo: Garry Begg campaign (garrybegg.bcndp.ca)
Sources: garrybegg.bcndp.ca; BC NDP; Elections BC; Province of British Columbia (gov.bc.ca); Surrey Now-Leader candidate questionnaire via europesays.com
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