Could the BC Liberals be renamed to the British Columbia Party? It’s an idea being floated by some analysts and at least several current and former MLAs.

Speaking on the NL Morning News, Jas Johal, who lost his seat in Richmond-Queensborough on the weekend, says it’s time to at least consider rebranding after the election loss.

“We have a lot of federal Liberal supporters in our party, we have federal Conservative supporters. I’m not sure federal Liberals would like to join the party if it was the BC Conservatives. And the Conservatives who support us probably don’t like it being BC Liberal,” he says.

“You look at the Saskatchewan Party, I’m sure there’s other names out there that don’t speak to specific idealogies.”

Like many Liberal members in the Kamloops area, Johal also says the party needs to better appeal to urban B.C. and make sure it is welcoming to all British Columbians.

Johal, a former TV reporter who grew up in Williams Lake, has been widely rumored as a candidate for the party’s new leader, despite his failed bid to be win reelection in 2020.

Similar to how Kamloops-North Thompson MLA-elect Peter Milobar and Kamloops-South Thompson MLA-elect Todd Stone answered that question, Johal says it’s still too early to say yes or no.

“It’s only been a few days since, how would I describe it. The voters took the party to the back of the bar and gave us a thumping. Some would say that comment is a little too harsh. Maybe it is. But I think this is a harsh reminder to all of us we really have to drive renewal in this party.”