Elections BC issued penalties to four individuals Wednesday over contraventions made during the 2024 B.C. provincial general election, and among them is billionaire Lululemon founder Chip Wilson, whose unauthorized election signs outside his property in Premier David Eby's home riding of Vancouver-Point Grey caused a political stir during the home stretch of the campaign.
Meanwhile, Elections BC issued smaller penalties to sitting Peace River South MLA Larry Neufeld, Surrey City Centre candidate Zeeshan Wahla and former MLA and Nanaimo-Lantzville candidate Gwen O’Mahony, all for sponsoring election ads without proper authorization.
Billionaire out $600
Wilson was fined $600 for contravening the Election Act after Elections BC discovered sponsored election advertising in the form of "a large sign" on his property, which took aim at Eby and the NDP.
The sign was held up by lumber supports and read, in bold black text with red highlights against a stark-white background: "Eby will tell you the Conservatives are 'Far Right' but neglects saying that the NDP is 'Communist.'"
The sign was posted during the campaign period, making it election advertising, Elections BC said in an enforcement notice.
Adam Barnes, director of investigations for Elections BC, said Wilson told an investigator he had put the homemade sign up himself.
Barnes said Wilson had sponsored election advertising during the campaign before registering as a third-party sponsor, which contravened the Election Act.
Wilson registered as a third-party sponsor and added a valid authorization statement to the sign on Oct. 10, six days after being notified of Elections BC's investigation.
Elections BC noted that signs need to contain an authorization statement so that it can be known who paid for them.
In total, Wilson erected three signs at his property. The other two read: “Voters seem to forget when Eby 'gives' us money, it is the Voters’ money he has already taken"; and : “If Eby and the NDP cannot balance the Provincial budget, what right does he have to tell us how to live our lives?”
Only one of the additional two signs contained a valid authorization statement, according to Elections BC.
Penalties for contraventions of the Election Act can be as high as $10,000. Wilson, whose net worth is $6.1 billion according to Forbes, was penalized just $600 because, as Barnes noted, he "may have been unaware of the requirement to register as a third party advertising sponsor" as a first-time ad sponsor.
Barnes added the signs had "significant exposure and reach," while noting Wilson was cooperative throughout the investigation.
Candidates face penalties, too
Three candidates in the election were also found to have contravened the Act on Wednesday.
Larry Neufeld, new BC Conservative MLA for Peace River South, was fined $200 over three instances of election advertising during the campaign period that did not contain an authorization statement. The first was a video posted on his campaign's X (formerly Twitter) account on Sept. 28, which described his commitment to the agricultural sector; the second was a sign featuring an image of an oil rig and a jail cell with the words: “End the Revolving Door Justice System”; the third was another video on X, which had information about Neufeld's campaign office.
Barnes noted the three election advertisements were public for 11, 18 and 14 days, respectively, before authorization statements were added.
The investigation found no deliberate attempt to circumvent the Act, and Neufeld's team was cooperative once contacted by Elections BC, Barnes noted.
Meanwhile, Surrey City Centre BC Conservative candidate Zeeshan Wahla was penalized $250 for a contravening ad in the Philippine Showbiz Today newspaper which ran Oct. 8 to 21, 2024. It read, “Elect Zeeshan Wahla Surrey City Centre” and did not include an authorization statement.
Wahla's team went back and forth with Elections BC about the ad. The back-and-forth ended with Wahla not responding to the investigator on Sept. 9, 2025.
Barnes noted Wahla's campaign was cooperative with "some elements" of the investigation, which did not find any deliberate attempts to circumvent the Act.
Former NDP MLA for Chilliwack-Hope Gwen O'Mahony was unsuccessful in running for the BC Conservatives in Nanaimo-Lantzville in 2024. She lost the riding to the NDP's George Anderson and, rubbing salt in the wound, was slapped with a $150 penalty from Elections BC on Wednesday.
O'Mahony's campaign website was found to be missing an authorization statement on Oct. 18. Her team responded to Elections BC the next day saying it had been added to the website, which Elections BC confirmed.
O'Mahony's campaign manager noted that in the last week of the campaign they were focused on pulling the vote, and the authorization omission "was the result of an update regarding the election night event that was not reviewed," according to the enforcement notice.
The website was active without authorization for about seven days during the 29-day campaign period, Barnes noted, adding no deliberate circumvention attempts were detected and O'Mahony's team was cooperative.
