What will the potential name change mean for the B.C. Liberal Party?

Voting began Nov. 13 to determine whether the B.C. Liberal Party should change its name to B.C. United, but former party stalwarts including a previous leader say they fear the rebrand could mean the party's shift further to the right on the political spectrum.

According to a news release from the party, the new name reflects their commitment to unity and "speaks to a fresher, more modern brand."

One of the biggest cheerleaders of the switch is B.C. Liberal Leader Kevin Falcon, who served as a cabinet minister under former B.C. Liberal premiers Gordon Campbell and Christy Clark.

Caroline Elliott, vice president of the party and a supporter of the name change, says the decision is up to their approximately-45,000 members — but she expects they will be in favour of it, if the support it received during their June convention were any indication.

"It's really been driven by members from day one, our leader Kevin Falcon has been 100 per cent clear about that," Elliott said.

"He said look, this is something our members keep talking about, let's make it totally up to them."

The motion needs 60 per cent of voter support to move ahead.

Gordon Campbell led shift to right: former party leader

Former B.C. Liberal leader Gordon Wilson says he expects the name change to go through — after which he will likely no longer be a member.

"I think I would probably give up my membership," said Wilson, who led the party from 1987 to 1993.

Wilson helped reinvigorate the B.C. Liberals in the late 1980s: the party then shared an office — and funding — with the federal Liberal Party, until Wilson led the provincial arm in a vote to split in 1989.

"What I wanted to do was to build a free enterprise party that was more open to the admission and bring in people from all walks of life [who] would be able to engage in this party," Wilson told CBC in an interview.

"So it was a philosophical split as well as the main difference."

Wilson went on to form a new party, the Progressive Democratic Alliance, from 1993 to 1999, before joining the B.C. New Democratic Party. There, he ran for leadership in 2000 but pulled out of the race just before voting began.

In 2013, he endorsed the B.C. Liberals, led by Christy Clark, during the provincial election.

Wilson says it was under Campbell's leadership that the party slowly shifted right.

"Since that time, the conservative influence in the Liberal Party has grown," he said. 

"It's become much greater and for a lot of these federal conservatives, the name 'Liberals' sticks in their throat like a chicken bone."

Name change a 'bad idea': former government advisor

Martyn Brown, Campbell's chief of staff, also says the change is a bad idea and reflects a change in ideology — but he expects it to pass.

"I think it's a very, very bad idea that is very short-sighted I think," Brown told CBC in an interview.

"An awful lot of people will be alienated that are liberals. Clearly this is all about bringing more conservatives into the party."

Reflecting on why the party has failed to win in recent elections, Brown says the B.C. Liberals' problem is not their name, but that they are not living up to it — allowing the B.C. NDP to take up that space on the political spectrum.

"Ironically, in trying to keep conservatives on side they alienated the very votes that they need, which are mostly liberal votes in the large urban centres, Metro Vancouver especially."

He says Falcon has made strong efforts to reach out to multicultural communities and is attracting younger voters with the promise of a big tent party — but has conservative views, making it difficult to win over progressives.

Falcon recruited former Surrey RCMP spokesperson Elenore Sturko, a member of the LGBTQ community, in a South Surrey byelection following the departure of previous Liberal representative, Stephanie Cadieux, who resigned to become Canada's first chief accessibility officer. Sturko won the seat in September.

Falcon also ousted Nechako Lakes MLA John Rustad for his social media posts on climate change.

However, the leader was recently photographed meeting federal Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre, who is known for his right to hard-right views.

Policies over party name: political scientist

The B.C. Liberals have grappled with the idea of a name change for decades, whether to create a new brand and energize the party, or to distinguish itself from the federal Liberals.

Political scientist Stewart Prest with Quest University says the party started moving into prominence when it was able to draw votes from the centre-right in the 1990s.

"Part of its recipe for success with the rise of of Gordon Campbell and subsequently Christy Clark was its ability to draw on voters who might vote for both the federal Liberals and the federal Conservative Party to really be this centrist, centre-right voice," Prest said.

He says that loose coalition of voters started to break down with the rise of the B.C. NDP under Premier John Horgan, with the NDP attracting voters on the promise of low taxes, focus on resource development, and progressive actions on the environment.

He adds that while "B.C. United" sounds like the name of a soccer or basketball team, the rebrand could be successful if there is also an effort to attract younger voters in urban ridings, where the B.C. Liberals have faltered.

"What really matters itself is less the name of the party itself than what kinds of policies become associated with it," said Prest.

The B.C. Liberal Party is expected to announce the result of the vote on Wednesday, two days before B.C. NDP MLA David Eby is sworn in as the province's next premier.