Richmond voters have put their trust in a pair of “first-timers” to represent them in Parliament.

Embracing their national party’s strategy on addressing the need for accessible and affordable housing, which continue to be major concerns for residents here and across the country, Liberal candidates Parm Bains in Steveston–Richmond East and Wilson Miao in Richmond Centre topped the polls in their respective ridings. In the process, they unseated incumbent Conservatives—Kenny Chiu after one term as the Member of Parliament for Steveston–Richmond East and Alice Wong after four terms as MP in Richmond Centre.

“My personal solution is to champion our (Liberal party) housing initiatives,” Bains said during the campaign. “I strongly believe every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home, and that’s no different right here in Steveston–Richmond East.”

The Liberals say their plan will help renters achieve their goal of owning a home by introducing a rent-to-own program, improve the First Time Home Buyer incentive, reduce closing costs when buying a home, and reduce monthly mortgage fees.

Miao echoed those sentiments.

“Every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home,” he said. “A challenging housing market and high rent prices have made the dream of owning a home feel impossible for many Canadians—particularly young Canadians, who aren't asking for a free house; they're asking for a fair shot. We will build more affordable homes, introduce a rent-to-own program and a Home Buyers’ Bill of Rights, support multigenerational living, and further support first-time buyers. Having worked in the real estate industry, I have seen the joy of helping young families find their first home. We are committed to supporting Canadians with home ownership.”

While several media outlets declared Bains’ victory in the Steveston–Richmond East riding within hours of the polls closing on election night, Miao was forced to wait several days for confirmation of his victory in the Richmond Centre riding.

With some 4,073 mail-in ballots requested in Steveston–Richmond East and and another 5,834 in Richmond Centre, the final results were not validated until Saturday (Sept. 25).

Bains received 16,543 votes or 42.5 per cent of the 38,949 valid ballots cast. Incumbent Chiu received 13,066 votes or 33.5 per cent. Voter turnout in the Steveston–Richmond East Riding was 52.77 per cent.

Miao received 13,440 votes or 39.3 per cent of the 34,161 valid ballots cast. Incumbent Wong received 12,668 votes or 37.1 per cent. Voter turnout in the Richmond Centre riding was 46.22 per cent.

During interviews with the Richmond Sentinel, Bains and Miao reinforced their belief in the Liberal housing plan.

“We have a strong plan and I’m excited about it. It was a huge component of our platform,” Bains said. “Our job is to make sure we execute on it.”

Said Miao: “Affordability and market rental are very critical issues and that is why we have to have all three levels of government (including the provinces and municipalities) working together.”

In their 2021 campaign platform Forward For Everyone, the Liberals addressed the fact that many Canadians see owning a home as key to building their future and joining the middle class. They proposed a three-part housing plan to make it happen.

Building on Canada’s National Housing Strategy which they introduced upon forming government in 2015, the 10-year plan is to invest more than $72 billion to build up supply, make housing affordable, and address chronic homelessness.

This election campaign, the Liberals also introduced a rent-to-own program based on three principles: the landlord committing to charing a renter a lower-than-market rate to help Canadians build up savings for a down payment; committing to ownership in a five-year term or less; and safeguards to protect the future homeowner. To help realize this, the platform proposed to commit $1 billion in loans and grants to develop and scale up rent-to-own projects with private, not-for-profit and co-op partners.

In the platform, a re-elected Liberal government also committed to reduce the price charged by the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation on mortgage insurance by 25 per cent.

To help save for a down payment, the Liberals are planning to introduce a tax-free First Home Savings Account. This will allow Canadians under the age of 40 to save up to $40,000 and withdraw the funds tax-free to put towards their first home purchase.

But being able to afford a home is only part of the challenge many Canadians face. To address the shortage, the Liberals plan to oversee the building or revitalization of another 250,000 homes over four years—on top of the 285,000 homes currently being constructed annually. That adds up to nearly 1.4 million homes by 2026; aided by a $4 billion investment in a new Housing Accelerator Fund.

To reduce speculative demand in the marketplace and help cool excessive price growth, the Liberals also proposed to establish an anti-flipping tax on residential properties, requiring them to be held for at least 12 months. At the same time, they say they will work with provinces and municipalities to develop a framework to better regulate the role of foreign buyers in the Canadian housing market so that this money does not deter housing from being available for, and used by, Canadians.

The Liberals also hope to further address rental increases by stopping “renovictions” by deterring unfair rent increases that fall outside of a normal change in rent. And they hope to further tackle homelessness by appointing a new federal housing advocate within the next 100 days. 

Full results for Richmond Centre:

• Laura Gillanders (Green Party): 1,109 votes (3.2 per cent)

• James Hinton (People’s Party): 748 votes (2.2 per cent)

• Wilson Miao (Liberal Party): 13,440 votes (39.3 per cent)

• Sandra Nixon (New Democratic Party): 6,196 votes (18.1 per cent)

• Alice Wong (Conservative Party): 12,668 votes (37.1 per cent)

Full results for Steveston–Richmond East:

• Parm Bains (Liberal Party): 16,543 votes (42.5 per cent)

• Kenny Chiu (Conservative Party): 13,066 votes (33.5 per cent)

• Françoise Raunet (Green Party): 860 votes (2.2 per cent)

• Jennifer Singh (People’s Party): 955 votes (2.5 per cent)

• Jack Trovato (New Democratic Party): 7,525 votes (19.3 per cent)