News release

Citizens' Assembly gets 158th member

The Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform selected its 158th member Monday night.

He is Firmin Hung, 24, from the provincial electoral district of Vancouver Kingsway. He was selected in a random draw at a public meeting in the Assembly office in Vancouver.

His selection brought the membership to 158 from all over B.C. – one man and one woman from each of the 79 provincial constituencies.

At the same time, the Assembly welcomed Lianne Ashley, also 24, as a member. She replaces Marjorie Morse of Vancouver, who withdrew for personal reasons after being selected in the riding of Vancouver Burrard.

Hung is a student at Simon Fraser University, in the Professional Development Program (teacher certification). He already has a degree in molecular biology. He’s single, and into snowboarding and rollerblading.

Ashley is a cigar aficionado and has been manager of a cigar store in Vancouver for 3 ½ years. She’s an avid reader and a movie-goer. She loves saxophone music, and plays it a little as well.

At the initial selection meeting for Vancouver-Kingsway, on Nov. 20, there were no male candidates in attendance. A woman from Kingsway was selected, but the vacancy remained for a man.

The Assembly members will spend much of 2004 examining electoral systems in use around the world, and will decide if they should propose a change to B.C.’s current system of translating votes into seats in the Legislature.

If the Assembly members recommend a change, it will be the subject of a referendum for all voters in the 2005 provincial election. Any change approved by the voters would take effect with the 2009 B.C. election.