Green Party leader Elizabeth May crosses her fingers as she arrives to watch federal election results with supporters in Sidney, B.C., on Monday. May won the first-ever seat for the Green Party in Canada, unseating a Tory cabinet minister in B.C. she defeated Conservative cabinet minister Gary Lunn in the Vancouver Island riding of Saanich-Gulf Islands. Lunn had represented the riding since he was elected as a Reform MP in 1997.
May’s win was the result of an all-or-nothing strategy by the party to get her elected. The party’s campaign revolved around the leader, a long-time environmental activist with national name recognition who moved from one coast to the other to increase her chances of winning.