VANCOUVER—Jody Wilson-Raybould stood up for what she believed in and bet that the voters of Vancouver Granville would back her up.

She was right.

The vote in this urban riding, filled with high-priced homes, academics and students — many from the nearby University of British Columbia — split after the Liberal Party spurned Wilson-Raybould, allowing the now-Independent candidate to hold on to her seat in a nail-biter of a race against Liberal Taleeb Noormohamed and Conservative Zach Segal.

For Wilson-Raybould, a We Wai Kai First Nation woman who was Canada’s first Indigenous attorney general, it was always been about doing what is she thought was right. She was jubilant as she entered the Hellenic Centre to a crowd of supporters on Monday night while Elton John’s song, “I’m Still Standing,” blared on the speakers.

The former minister of justice began her victory speech with a nod to one of her biggest supporters — Jane Philpott, the Independent candidate in the Markham-Stoufville riding, who did not win her seat. “She was literally the best minister of the Crown that this country has ever seen. I know Parliament will be lesser without her presence.”

As for the Liberal minority win, Wilson-Raybould repeated what she has said before, that she will “work with all members of Parliament,” and would “certainly work with the incoming government.”

She added her priorities include climate change, electoral reform and making “space for true reconciliation with Indigenous people.”

But this was also a moral victory for Wilson-Raybould, who stood up to pressure from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and members of his inner circle, who wanted her to intervene in the SNC-Lavalin case to prevent a criminal prosecution.

“This win means it is OK to stand up for what you believe in. To speak your truth, to act with integrity,” she said.

Candis Callison, an author and University of British Columbia journalism and Indigenous studies professor, said Wilson-Raybould’s re-election signals three things.

“First, it shows that she enjoys the strong support of her constituency both for the stance she took and all of the work she did, both as a cabinet minister and in the aftermath. But, second, and maybe most importantly, I think this is a vote for a fierce, unflinching approach to ethics in government,” said Callison in an interview.

“ I hope we can depend on her to work hard as an Independent to call out and call up the government to higher standards. Third, I hope her singular voice will be heard equally loudly on First Nations child welfare and boil water advisories as well as issues directly impacting her region and riding like the TMX expansion. She has deep and enormous knowledge of Indigenous issues and it’s my hope that as an Independent, she will be an important voice that all parties listen to when it comes to Indigenous communities.”

Trudeau was widely criticized in Indigenous circles for his treatment of Wilson-Raybould during the SNC-Lavalin scandal, after winning the 2015 election on a promise to improve Canada’s relationship with Indigenous people. He promised to bring clean water to First Nations communities, renew nation-to-nation agreements, support Indigenous languages and hold a national inquiry into murdered and missing Indigenous women and girls.

During the last federal election, First Nations people showed up in droves for the Liberals. According to Elections Canada, the 2015 election had the largest voter turnout on-reserve since 2004 and that nationally, 61.5 per cent of eligible voters in reserve communities went to the polls in 2015, that is up from 47.4 per cent in 2011, reported the CBC.

Joshua Fraser said it would be incredibly ironic if Wilson-Raybould actually helped sway the balance of power in a minority government. “It would be poetic justice, for what she has been through.

Fraser, who is from Peepeekisis First Nation, is the curator of the @IndigPoli site and he analyzes and tracks the Indigenous vote in Canada.

“I always think of a mentor of mine when I vote, the late Elijah Harper. People wonder what one person or vote can do, I think about him saying ‘No,’ over and over with his eagle father in hand, voting not to support the Meech Lake Accord, with the pressure of the nation on him, still he said, ‘No.’

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“As a result of this action, the Meech Lake Accord failed to get the votes required to pass, the accord would have given Quebec significant recognition while totally ignoring the first people in Canada,” Fraser said.

“My great grandfather fought in Canadian wars so that my generation would have the same rights as any other Canadian, including the right to vote when he returned home from war. It wouldn’t be until the 1960s until First Nations people could vote,” he said.

“Some state the election turnout won’t be as high for Indigenous peoples in 2019 as it was in 2015. My reserve Peepeekisis is ground zero for discussion on First Nations voting, it’s Scheer’s Regina-QuAppelle (riding) which has been reported has a significant Indigenous voter base. I’ve seen a ramp-up compared to 2015 on discussions and voting organization,” he said.

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