| Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia | |
|---|---|
 Emblem of the lieutenant governor | |
 Flag of the lieutenant governor | |
since 30 January 2025 | |
| Viceroy | |
| Style | Her Honourthe Honourable |
| Residence | Government House,Victoria |
| Appointer | Thegovernor general on the advice of theprime minister |
| Term length | At the governor general's pleasure (usually 5 years) |
| Formation | 20 July 1871 |
| First holder | Joseph Trutch |
| Salary | $126,241/year |
| Website | ltgov |
Thelieutenant governor of British Columbia (/lɛfˈtɛnənt/) is the representative of the monarch in the province ofBritish Columbia, Canada. The office oflieutenant governor is an office ofthe Crown and serves as a representative of themonarchy in the province, rather than thegovernor general of Canada. The office was created in 1871 when theColony of British Columbia joinedConfederation. Since then, the lieutenant governor has been the representative of themonarchy in British Columbia. Previously, between December 1858 and July 1863, the title of lieutenant governor of British Columbia was given toRichard Clement Moody, who was Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works for British Columbia and Commander of theRoyal Engineers, Columbia Detachment that founded theColony of British Columbia in 1858. Moody's office coexisted with the office of governor of British Columbia that was held byJames Douglas during that time.
The lieutenant governor of British Columbia is appointed in the same manner as the other provincial viceroys in Canada and is similarly tasked with carrying out most of the monarch's constitutional and ceremonial duties.[1] Since 30 January 2025,Wendy Lisogar-Cocchia has served as the 31st lieutenant governor of British Columbia.
The lieutenant governor of British Columbia is vested witha number of governmental duties.
The viceroy is also expected to undertakevarious ceremonial roles. The lieutenant governor, him or herself a member and Chancellor of the order,[2] will induct deserving individuals into theOrder of British Columbia and, upon installation, automatically becomes a Knight or Dame of Justice and the Vice-Prior in British Columbia of theMost Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem.[3] The viceroy further presents otherprovincial honours and decorations, as well asvarious awards that are named for and presented by the lieutenant governor; these are generally created in partnership with another government or charitable organization and linked specifically to their cause.[4] These honours are presented at official ceremonies, which count amongst hundreds of other engagements the lieutenant governor partakes in each year, either as host or guest of honour; the lieutenant governor of British Columbia undertook 350 engagements in 2006 and 390 in 2007.[5]
At these events, the lieutenant governor's presence is marked by thelieutenant governor's standard, consisting of a blue field bearing the escutcheon of theArms of His Majesty in Right of British Columbia, surmounted by a crown and surrounded by ten gold maple leaves, symbolizing theten provinces of Canada. Within British Columbia, the lieutenant governor also follows only the sovereign in theprovince's order of precedence, preceding even other members of theCanadian Royal Family and the Canadian monarch's federal representative, thegovernor general of Canada.
The first British settlement in the area was theColony of British Columbia, of which the founder and first lieutenant governor wasRichard Clement Moody, who had previously served as the firstgovernor of the Falkland Islands. Moody also had the title Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works for British Columbia. Moody selected the site for and foundedNew Westminster—the original capital ofBritish Columbia—and establishedCariboo Road andStanley Park. He namedBurnaby Lake after his private secretary,Robert Burnaby, and named Port Coquitlam's 400-foot (120 m)Mary Hill after his wife, Mary.[6]Port Moody is named after him.
The original Colony of British Columbia was amalgamated with theColony of Vancouver Island in 1866. Thatlarger jurisdiction was succeeded by the present-day province of British Columbia, following the territory's entry intoCanadian Confederation in 1871, when the present office of the lieutenant governor of British Columbia came into being.[7]
Since 1871, 28 lieutenant governors have served the province, including firsts such asDavid Lam—the firstAsian-Canadian lieutenant governor in Canada—andIona Campagnolo—the first female lieutenant governor of British Columbia. The shortest mandate by a lieutenant governor of British Columbia wasEdward Gawler Prior, from 1919 to his death in 1920, while the longest wasGeorge Pearkes, from October 1960 to July 1968.
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In 1903, beforepolitical parties were a part ofBritish Columbia politics,Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière was the last lieutenant governor in Canada to dismiss an incumbent premier, Edward Gawler Prior, from office. Prior had been found to have given an important construction contract to his own hardware business;[8] though, he was later appointed as lieutenant governor himself. In 1952, without a clear majority in the legislative assembly following thegeneral election, Lieutenant GovernorClarence Wallace was required to exercise his personal judgement in selecting theprovince's premier. Though the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF; now theNew Democratic Party) held one fewer seat than theSocial Credit Party (Socred), Wallace was under pressure to call on the CCF leader to form a government.[9] Wallace, however, went with Socred leaderW.A.C. Bennett, which resulted in the start of a 20-year dynasty for the latter.
Theprovincial election in 2017 resulted in neither the incumbentLiberals, nor the opposition New Democrats (NDP), winning a majority. The balance rested with theGreen Party, which eventually agreed to support an NDP minority government with NDP leaderJohn Horgan as premier.[10] Still, PremierChristy Clark refused to resign until she could test thelegislative assembly's confidence in her.[11] As the vote on theSpeech from the Throne is automatically a confidence vote and the speech was voted down, Clark's government fell.[12] She advised Lieutenant GovernorJudith Guichon to call a new elections, contending that the NDP would be unable to provide a stable government due to the need for one of its members to act as speaker, likely resulting in frequent tied votes that could be broken only by the speaker. Guichon disagreed and refused to dissolve the legislature. Clark then resigned and Guichon invited Horgan to form a government,[13] which was sworn in by Guichon on 18 July.[14]
During Guichon's time serving as lieutenant governor, she put a strong focus on theinteraction of the Crown in British Columbia with the Indigenous peoples in the province, which she said needed to be defined by "respect, relationships, and responsibility", stating that the Canadian monarchy was central to the treaty relationship.[15]
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