Watching John Horgan on Tuesday afternoon as he announced his plan to step down as premier this fall reminded me of Christy Clark.
The last two B.C. premiers couldn’t be any more different from each other politically but as individuals, Horgan is Clark’s brother from another mother, Clark is Horgan’s sister from another mister.
During their visits to The Citizen over the years, both Clark and Horgan displayed the charisma combined with the common touch that made them the leader of their respective parties and then premier. The conversations before and after the formal interviews were fast-moving chats sprinkled with smiles and laughs. Their curiosity and deep interest in people were no act because it can’t be faked.
While Horgan downplayed the pleasure he takes in partisan sparring during his remarks Tuesday, he has relished it as much as Clark did, whether it was on the floor of the Legislature, in a scrum with reporters or during election debates. Their sharp tongues, quick minds and self-confidence made them both formidable politicians and premiers.
Most voters don’t pay much attention to political parties or their platforms. Horgan and Clark are living proof of the collective wisdom of voters who cast their ballot based on who they like, who speaks to them and their concerns, who sounds sincere and who will work hard. Neither of them was given much of a chance to succeed when they took over their parties and both proved the pundits wrong with heaping doses of effort, energy, and political calculation.
Although they both earned their chair in the premier’s office on the strength of their personal brand, they governed by committee, allowing their top cabinet members to shine when they delivered results while stepping forward when somebody had to publicly take the blame. That’s in stark contrast to the spotlight hogging of Gordon Campbell, the premier before them, and the last several prime ministers, especially the current one.
Seen in that light, B.C. has been blessed during the past decade with two premiers who were so much alike in all the ways that matter in politics – their love of this province and its citizens, their burning desire to make things better for everyone and their optimism that they could make it happen.
It’s uncertain whether the next premier will share those traits but at least voters will have two good gauges to measure them.
